Without Mbappé or Griezmann, the rejuvenated Blues will change era this Thursday evening against Israel

Deschamps cherche de nouveaux cadres, comme Ousmane Dembélé, qui sera le joueur le plus capé ce jeudi avec 51 sélections. MAXPPP – Alexandre Dimou

The French team faces Israel this Thursday evening in Budapest (8:45 p.m.) in the Nations League, in a context made unclear by the absence of Mbappé, rested at the request of Real, and Griezmann, who has retired. It is up to the youngsters to take over.

Without captain Kylian Mbappé, left at the disposal of Real Madrid, nor Antoine Griezmann, recently retired international, France must not lose its compass, Thursday in the Nations League against the modest team of Israel, a match relocated to Budapest because of the war in the Middle East.

Since the Hamas attack on the Hebrew state on 7 October 2023 and the counter-offensive led by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip, UEFA has banned “until further notice” the organisation of matches in Israel. Didier Deschamps's Blues will thus discover the tiny Bozsik Arena in the Hungarian capital (8,200 seats) where they will try to offer themselves a second success in a row after the one brought back from Lyon against Belgium (2-0), on September 9.

The shadow of the “Mbappé affair”

With this victory against the Red Devils, who the French will meet again in Brussels on Monday, the coach thought he had chased away the big clouds that appeared after a very disappointing Euro and a humiliating defeat conceded against Italy at the Parc des Princes (3-1), on September 6. But just before the start of this October gathering in Clairefontaine, Griezmann's farewell to the national team threw a chill before the Mbappé controversy came to sow even more trouble within the group.

The superstar of the Blues, who was not selected for "not taking risks", according to Deschamps, after being injured in the left thigh, nevertheless played half an hour with Real Madrid last Wednesday in Lille in the Champions League before starting against Villarreal (2-0), Saturday in La Liga.

"Oxygenate&quot the selection

A month after having already caused unease in the French team with his very distant behavior and performances unworthy of his status, the striker has once again made headlines, forcing the coach to justify his choice on Monday in a video released by the French Football Federation (FFF).

“The starting premise is that the interests of the clubs and the interests of the national teams inevitably diverge at some point, and we must not forget that the employer is the club, not the federation”, explained Deschamps, adding that he preferred to “prioritize the player's interests without putting him in difficulty”.

Dembélé the oldest

Explanations that have not closed the debate, even giving the impression of an increasingly clear hold of the big clubs on the national teams. Enough also to blur a little more the image of the French captain, already under fire from critics after a totally failed European Championship.

Deschamps has certainly indicated on many occasions that he wants to use the League of Nations to “breathe fresh air” into his team and see new elements at work. But deprived of Mbappé and Griezmann, he is forced to approach his next two matches without a real leader, Ousmane Dembélé, with his 51 selections, appearing as the most capped player while the captain's armband will be worn on Thursday by Aurélien Tchouaméni.

Offensive animation in decline

Israel, which lost its first two Nations League matches (3-1 against Belgium, 2-1 against Italy), is not, on paper, of a nature to worry France. But the absence of leaders and technical bosses of the caliber of Mbappé and Griezmann could complicate the task of the vice-world champions, who have been uninspired in their play and in terms of creation in recent months.

While the defense, the only positive point of the Euro, should not suffer too much against the 79th nation in the Fifa rankings, it is therefore mainly the attackers who will be under particular surveillance. The players lined up on Thursday will have an interest in shining, otherwise they will revive the recurring questions about offensive animation and increase the pressure on the coach.