France will arrive at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar hungry to defend the title they lifted four years ago in Russia.
Their star-studded side will be confident of another good run at the tournament but must be wary of a recent trend that’s seen past winners fail to escape their group.
After winning the World Cup in 2018, France also won the UEFA Nations League in 2021 but were knocked out in the Round of 16 at the delayed Euros.
Didier Deschamps’s side will go into the 2022 World Cup having won just one of their last six matches and will be relying on their players to step up when it matters most in Qatar.
MORE: Can France win the World Cup? | Is Mbappe about to leave PSG?
Final 26-man France World Cup squad
Manager Deschamps had until Friday, October 21 to submit an official preliminary list of 35-55 players to FIFA from which he selected his final roster for Qatar by Monday, November 14, with up to 26 players allowed on the final list.
Notably, Paul Pogba is absent from the list, as he was ruled out of action with a new thigh injury picked up while rehabbing his prior knee injury. Pogba’s agent Rafaela Pimenta confirmed in a statement to the media on October 31 that he would not be fit for the FIFA tournament.
N’Golo Kante was also ruled out of the tournament due to injury, while defender Raphael Varane was included despite an injury in the run-up to the tournament. Goalkeeper Mike Maignan was left out amidst injury struggles, as was Boubacar Kamara, while Real Madrid full-back Ferland Mendy was excluded as well.
Finally, there were late reports that Eduardo Camavinga could be left out, but that proved not to be the case.
Deschamps initially announced a 25-man list but indicated he could make a late addition to the group. Widespread reports in France early on November 14 stated that Marcus Thuram was the man handed the late call-up.
| Position | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Alphonse Areola | West Ham (ENG) | 29 | 5 |
| Goalkeeper | Hugo Lloris | Tottenham (ENG) | 35 | 139 |
| Goalkeeper | Steve Mandanda | Rennes (FRA) | 37 | 34 |
| Defender | Lucas Hernandez | Bayern Munich (FRA) | 26 | 32 |
| Defender | Theo Hernandez | AC Milan (ITA) | 25 | 7 |
| Defender | Presnel Kimpembe | PSG (FRA) | 28 | 28 |
| Defender | Ibrahima Konate | Liverpool (ENG) | 23 | 2 |
| Defender | Jules Kounde | Barcelona (SPA) | 23 | 12 |
| Defender | Benjamin Pavard | Bayern Munich (GER) | 26 | 46 |
| Defender | William Saliba | Arsenal (ENG) | 21 | 7 |
| Defender | Dayot Upamecano | Bayern Munich (GER) | 23 | 7 |
| Defender | Raphael Varane | Manchester United (ENG) | 29 | 87 |
| Midfielder | Eduardo Camavinga | Real Madrid (SPA) | 19 | 4 |
| Midfielder | Youssouf Fofana | AS Monaco (FRA) | 23 | 2 |
| Midfielder | Matteo Guendouzi | Marseille (FRA) | 23 | 6 |
| Midfielder | Adrien Rabiot | Juventus (ITA) | 27 | 29 |
| Midfielder | Aurelien Tchouameni | Real Madrid (SPA) | 22 | 14 |
| Midfielder | Jordan Veretout | Marseille (FRA) | 29 | 5 |
| Forward | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid (FRA) | 34 | 97 |
| Forward | Ousmane Dembele | Barcelona (FRA) | 25 | 28 |
| Forward | Kingsley Coman | Bayern Munich (GER) | 26 | 40 |
| Forward | Olivier Giroud | AC Milan (ITA) | 36 | 114 |
| Forward | Antoine Griezmann | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | 31 | 110 |
| Forward | Kylian Mbappe | PSG (FRA) | 23 | 59 |
| Forward | Christopher Nkunku | RB Leipzig (GER) | 24 | 8 |
| Forward | Marcus Thuram | Bor. M’Gladbach (GER) | 25 | 4 |
WORLD CUP 2022 SELECTED SQUADS:
Australia | Argentina | Belgium | Brazil | Cameroon
Canada | Costa Rica | Croatia | Denmark | England
France | Germany | Ghana | Iran | Japan | Mexico
Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Qatar | Senegal
Serbia | Spain | Switzerland | Uruguay | USA | Wales
France national team stars, strengths & weaknesses
The 2018 World Cup winners remain one of the strongest teams in the world, despite recent struggles.
France notably have a good mix of young and old talent to draw upon going into Qatar.
Stars
Kylian Mbappe is the undoubted star of this France team and scored four goals at the last World Cup as a teenager.
The PSG forward is already halfway to becoming the side’s all-time top scorer, a record he will no doubt break in the years to come. His goals will prove crucial if France are to succeed in Qatar.
Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris might not be as flashy, but he is set to become France’s most-capped player if he plays at least four games at the 2022 World Cup.
Strengths
There is no shortage of goalscorers in this France team. Alongside Mbappe, veteran strikers like Karim Benzema and Antoine Griezmann give this side plenty of players capable of stepping up in the final third.
Age is also on Les Bleus’ side going into Qatar, with a perfect blend of youth and experience set to take the pitch.
36 – Steve Mandanda (37 years and 226 days) and Olivier Giroud (36 years and 40 days) are the first two players over 36 years old called up for a World Cup with the French team. Experience. pic.twitter.com/5gnAUtTMyS
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) November 9, 2022
Weaknesses
While capable of scoring plenty of goals, this France team is also vulnerable to letting their fair share in.
They’ve kept just one clean sheet across their final five games ahead of the 2022 World Cup with a number of their defenders not exactly shining at club level. The injury to Man United’s Raphael Varane will set off alarm bells in what is already a problematic sector of the field.
They also have a very thin midfield thanks to the injuries to Pogba and Kante.
France World Cup group
France have been drawn in Group D for the 2022 World Cup alongside Australia, Denmark and Tunisia.
In 2018, France also found themselves in group containing both Australia and Denmark.
Les Bleus will be the leading contenders to win Group D, with the Danes looming as arguably their sternest test.
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Tue, Nov. 22 | Denmark vs. Tunisia | 8 a.m. | Education City Stadium |
| Tue, Nov. 22 | France vs. Australia | 2 p.m. | Al Janoub Stadium |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | Tunisia vs. Australia | 5 a.m. | Al Janoub Stadium |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | France vs. Denmark | 11 a.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | Tunisia vs. France | 10 a.m. | Education City Stadium |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | Australia vs. Denmark | 10 a.m. | Al Janoub Stadium |
France vs. Australia squad, lineup
A strong start will be vital for France against Australia, with a tougher match against Denmark looming just four days later.
Deschamps will likely look to field a strong starting team for this game and save any experimenting for the Tunisia clash, when they may have already sealed a spot in the Round of 16.
Deschamps has preferred a 3-4-1-2 formation recently, with his fullbacks deployed essentially as midfielders. It will be interesting to see who he starts in midfield next to Aurelien Tchouameni, with Eduardo Camavinga expected to play, but Matteo Guendouzi, Jordan Veretout, and Adrien Rabiot could all see time.
France projected starting XI vs. Australia (3-4-1-2)
GK: Hugo Lloris
DFs: Jules Kounde — Raphael Varane — Dayot Upamecano
MFs: Ferland Mendy — Eduardo Camavinga — Aurelien Tchouameni — Benjamin Pavard
FWs: Ousmane Dembele — Karim Benzema — Kylian Mbappe
Can France replace players on World Cup roster?
Once the final 26-man roster is official, participating teams at the World Cup can only make changes before the first game of the tournament, and only in the case of extraordinary circumstances.
According to the official tournament rules, “a player listed on the final list may only be replaced in the event of serious injury or illness up until 24 hours before the start of his team’s first match.”
The team in question would need to submit a medical report to FIFA and if the world governing body determines “the injury or illness is sufficiently serious to prevent the player from taking part in the FIFA World Cup” then the replacement will be allowed.
The replacement player must come from the preliminary list of players submitted to FIFA in October.
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