France are one of the favourites to win the Qatar tournament. The world champions have won just once in their last six games. N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba, two of the team’s most important players, are both injured. The defending champs will have to make some adjustments to his squad.
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Aurelien Tchouameni, a 22-year-old playing for Real Madrid, is one of the player france can turn to if N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba are unavailable. With so many talented midfielders, like Tchouameni, at his disposal, Deschamps will have a lot of players to choose from in France’s group games.
They will battle Tunisia, Denmark, and Australia to top their group at the World Cup 2018, where they were drawn with Denmark, Australia, and Peru.
France at FIFA World Cup
In 1958, France’s World Cup victory in Sweden led to the country’s first successful tournament. In the 1950s, Just Fountaine scored 13 goals in six matches, helping the Les Bleus to their first title. During the 1980s, France became a world power, finishing fourth and third in the 1982 and 1986 World Cups, respectively, and winning the 1984 European Championships.
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The France team of the 1980s included midfield maestro Michel Platini and defender Marius Trésor, as well as several other important players. They played an intense style of football that produced some of the World Cup’s most thrilling matches, including the 1982 semi-final against West Germany.
This golden generation would eventually lead to a France team that would be unable to compete in the next two World Cups, and it would take until 1998 for the country to host the World Cup for the second time. In 1998, David Trezeguet, Thierry Henry, and Zinedine Zidane formed a successful World Cup winning squad, which would go on to win the 2000 European Championship as well.
France fell in the group stage of the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. The 2002 European Championships, and would subsequently reach the World Cup final in 2004. The 1-1 draw with Italy in the final would eventually result in France’s loss in the penalty shootout. Marco Materazzi’s infamous headbutt on Zinedine Zidane will always be remembered.
France were ousted in the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup after a strong showing in Brazil. Les Bleus were eliminated in the group stages of the 2010 World Cup after an uproarous match. Anelka, after being punished for swearing at Domenech and speaking out against him, refused to participate in training sessions. The improved performance, despite the disappointment in the quarterfinals, would ultimately lead to failure in the 2014 World Cup quarterfinals.
After finishing second at the 2016 European Championships. France would win their second World Cup title in Russia in 2018, defeating Croatia 4-2 in the final.
Expectations
Les Bleus, who are among the tournament’s favourites, should reach the semi-finals at least. They will likely come up against Poland or Mexico in the next round. Later followed by England, the Netherlands, or Senegal if there are no major upsets.
The French, who are loaded with world-class talent, must be considered a serious contender to win the World Cup. No nation has ever defended their title like Brazil who defended their title in 1962.
