Widening talent pool proving beneficial to France following injury crisis

Widening talent pool proving beneficial to France following injury crisis

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In the world of football things can turn so quickly in just the space of the week, but in just over a year a whole lot can change.

The French national team has experienced somewhat of a min-rebuild in the past 12 months in the lead-up to the 2016 Euros with a number of new and former players making an appearance in squads during warm-up matches.

Rewind to June of last year where the French played two friendlies against Belgium and Albania as part of their preparations for this year’s tournament. The line-up for that first match is vastly different to the side that lined-up in the opening game of the tournament against
Romania.

For the game against Belgium the team was as follows:

The defensive back five included Hugo Lloris in goals with Benoit Tremoulinas, Raphael Varane, Bacary Sagna and Laurent Koscielny making up the back line.

In midfield were Yohan Cabaye, Blaise Matuidi, Moussa Sissoko and Mathieu Valbuena.

Up front was the same combination that we have seen in France’s opening two games thus far Oliver Giroud and Antoine Griezmann.

Whilst an extended bench featured the following:

Steve Mandanda, Stephane Ruffier, Christophe Jallet, Mamadou Sakho, Nabil Fekir, Dimitri Payet, Eliaquim Mangala, Alexander Lacazette, Maxime Gonalons, Paul Pogba and Paul-Georges Ntep.

Fast forward to the beginning of the Euros and nine new names are featured in the squad that did not feature in those matches against Belgium and Albania.

The squad for this year’s tournament is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Lloris, Mandanda and Benoit Costil.

Defenders: Lucas Digne, Evra, Jallet, Mangala, Adil Rami, Sagna, Samuel Umtiti

Midfielders: Cabaye, Kingsley Coman, N’Golo Kante, Matuidi, Payet, Pogba, Morgan Schneiderlin, Sissoko

Forwards: Andre-Pierre Gignac, Giroud, Griezmann, Anthony Martial

With a number of key players missing it has allowed for coach Didier Deschamps to experiment with more players thus giving him more depth in the lead up to the tournament. In the opening game of the tournament against Romania there was five new faces in the line-up from the starting XI against Belgium last year.

In defence players such as Rami and Koscielny have been given the opportunity to lead the defence through the absences of players such as Kurt Zouma, who suffered a season-ending knee injury during a Premier League game for Chelsea this season.

With further players being experimented with at international level it will only make things better for the team in both the short and long-term futures. The midfield has arguably gone the biggest change since that match against Belgium with only Matuidi the only remaining player who started the game against Romania.

The PSG midfielder was joined by Pogba, Payet and Kante in France’s 2-1 win on the opening night of the tournament.

The emergence of Payet and Kante as key figures in the French line-up is a real credit to the manager for giving players in good form a chance to perform at the top level, a move which has only increased the host nation’s chances of lifting the trophy.

Young forwards Coman and Martial’s inclusion show that the French have an eye to the future also, but their form at club level was rewarded with call-ups earlier in the season.

With a number of players sitting on the sidelines for France, at this year’s European Championship means once a greater pool of player’s are available to Deschamps competition for places will be greater.

And with greater competition, comes a better standard of football for the French national team.

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