By Biodun Busari 

France are the defending champions with two World Cup titles to their credit and also possess stars like the Ballon d’Or holder Karim Benzema, Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe, Olivier Giroud, Antonio Griezman and others that can help replicate the victory of the last edition in Russia 2018.

France hosted the competition in 1998 and lifted World Cup for the first time on their soil with unarguably the best squad in their history which had Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Viera, Thierry Henry, Emmanuel Petit, Didier Deschamps, Marcel Desailly, Frank Lebouf, Lilian Thuram, Fabian Barthez and others. 

To the amazement of the world, they dazzled again with another array of stars 20 years later to win it the second time. They still pride themselves on the majority of the talents that won it in Russia with an advantage that they have improved as players plying their trades in Europe.

They are one of the top favourites, and will most likely top group D which has Australia, Denmark and Tunisia to advance to any length in the competition. Theoretically, France should be in the final or at worst play in the semis.

However, France should be wary of a common syndrome that defending champions usually crash out of the group stages since 2002 when France did not score a single goal at the tournament. Spain were champions in 2010, and Germany in 2014 and they both did not make it to the round of 16 in the following editions and complacency might mar them in Qatar.

Also, the Didier Deschamps’ side would miss some of its key players as Chelsea midfielder Ngolo Kante is already ruled out because of a hamstring injury since August. In the same vein, Manchester United defender Raphael Varane picked up an injury in the 1-1 draw game against Chelsea in October and also would miss the tournament. Without a doubt, these are some of the defects that could punish France.

Players to watch out for:

Name: Karim Benzema

Position: Striker 

Current club: Real Madrid 

Age: 34-year-old

Karim Benzema is the Madrid skipper and a prolific striker who has scored 224 goals for the club in his 422 appearances. He played a prominent role in the club’s triumphs in La Liga and Champions League last season which earned him UEFA and Ballon d’Or awards. 

Since joining the French national team in 2007, Benzema has scored 37 goals in 97 caps and he has the capacity to fire Les Bleus to glory in Qatar. Apart from scoring goals, he has also earned himself the top assist player in the team.

The 34-year-old is agile and can position himself well to punish defenders by shooting with his right foot and also possesses ball-heading accuracy to score goals. He is a creative striker and one of the world’s top strikers, and France can rely on his brilliance to perform in the World Cup campaign.

Name: Kylian Mbappe

Position: Forward

Current club: Paris Saint-Germain

Age: 23-year-old

In Russia 2018, Kylian Mbappe was just 20 years old and finished as the joint second-highest goal scorer, won the FIFA World Cup Best Young Player and French Player of the Year for his performances. His dribbling skills, exceptional speed and sublime finishing won him all these at the last edition, and the good thing is that he has matured more to help his national team in the last three years.

The 23-year-old former Monaco forward who joined in 2017 has scored 28 goals in 59 games for the French senior team. He played a huge role in the qualifying game for the team and the remarkable one was his four goals in the 8-0 win over Kazakhstan in November 2021.

As a huge talent, Mbappe is also good at providing assists like Benzema. As a matter of fact, against Finland in their 2-0 victory, Mbappe scored one and set up an assist for Benzema in their last match World Cup qualifying series. This is what Mbappe can bring to France in Qatar.

Name: Hugo Lloris

Position: Goalkeeper

Current club: Tottenham

Age: 35-year-old

As the captain of the French national team and EPL club Tottenham, Hugo Lloris has a wealth of experience that the team needs to function in the group stage and advance further. Since 2008 when he was called up, he has been fantastic between the sticks for France.

He is a World Cup veteran who helped the team in 2018 to win the trophy. One of his remarkable feats was on November 17, 2018, when he made a record of 9 saves in a UEFA Nations League match against the Netherlands but France lost 2-0.

Deschamps would depend on the Spurs goalie not only for his goaltending abilities but leadership capacities he exhibits from the back with his defensive line, and this is a huge advantage as the team bids to retain the trophy in Qatar.

Coach

Name: Didier Deschamps

Position: Manager

Age: 54-yea-old

Didier Deschamps assumed the coaching role for France in 2012 and led the team to 2014 in Brazil where they reached the quarter-finals before guiding them to victory in Russia where they lifted the trophy.

He is the only Frenchman that won the trophy as a player in 1998 and coach in 2018 and as such has another capability of setting a new record to retain the title for his team and country.

He is popularly known for deploying defensive midfielders in his tactics that make it difficult for opponents to penetrate through the game. Deschamps has transferred his high work rate, tenacity and vision as a former player to his managerial role which his players imbibe.

He has tactical intelligence and an organizational sense that could make him win the World Cup again. However, the absence of some key players in his squad could hurt him if he does not fix it perfectly.