Special envoy to Athens
Unsurprisingly, it is a French team reshuffled compared to the historic victory against Gibraltar (14-0) on Saturday in Nice which will present itself this Tuesday in Athens. Didier Deschamps, faced with the infernal pace of the calendars, the pressure from certain clubs, the injury of Zaire-Emery and guided by the desire to obtain the most information on certain people with a view to the Euro (June 14-July 14) , is carrying out a large squad review for the last match of the year.
Thus, eight changes are made by the coach, eager to end the calendar year on a good note and spend the holidays in first place in the Fifa ranking ahead of Argentina. To do this, do better than the reigning world champions, who face Brazil next night in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in the South America zone. To validate a qualifying campaign with eight victories in as many matches, the France team will present itself with Samba in goal, Jules Koundé on the right and William Saliba in the center. The two Hernandez brothers are aligned to complete the defensive line, Théo on the left and Lucas, central.
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In midfield, Adrien Rabiot and Antoine Griezmann will supervise Youssouf Fofana, preferred to Boubacar Kamara. Ahead, uncertainty hovered around captain Mbappé, author of a hat-trick and three assists against Gibraltar on Saturday. Make him chain, he who always wants to play, or make him breathe in view of PSG-Monaco scheduled for Friday during the 13th day of Ligue 1? Deschamps decided. “KM” will start the match on the bench. Author of a double in Nice, Olivier Giroud will be there at the forefront of the French attack, accompanied by Parisians Ousmane Dembélé and Randal Kolo Muani.
The Blues’ 11 in Greece: Samba – Koundé, Saliba, L. Hernandez, T. Hernandez – Griezmann, Fofana, Rabiot – Dembélé, Giroud, Kolo Muani.