How’s France without Benzema? Better than ever

Injury? No problem

France had a lot of eyes on them before the World Cup. Projected to recover early due to poor form and injury problems, it looked as if Les Bleus would have a hard time in Qatar when Craig Goodwin scored an early goal in their opener.

But to the surprise of most people, France fought back. First came a header from Adrien Rabiot to level the game. Olivier Giroud’s incredible trick inside the box helped France score another goal to take the lead. Kylian Mbappé headed France’s third goal in the second half, and Giroud closed the game with another header to end the game 4-1.

France followed up a dominant display against Australia with a knockout round win against Denmark. Mbappé took the lead early with a magnificent goal on 61 minutes, but Denmark struck back with a powerful header past Hugo Lloris. Denmark, which always seemed to be the kryptonite of France’s superhuman attack, seemed to have found a solution to Mbappé’s goal.

That was until the 86th minute, when Mbappé sent Antoine Griezmann’s cross past Kasper Schemichel and into the net.

After Tunisia beat France’s reserve team in their final group game, France faced Poland looking surprisingly dangerous. They proved it late in the first half when Olivier Giroud sent a first-class shot past Wojciech Szczesny into the back of the net, making him France’s top scorer. Mbappé sent in his fourth goal of the season, placing his calculated shot past a host of defenders and Szczesny to double France’s lead.

He scored a wonder goal in the 90th minute, curling a great shot from a difficult angle into the top corner of the net, giving Mbappé his fifth World Cup goal and France’s third of the game. Although Robert Lewandowski’s stoppage-time penalty prevented a clean sheet, France’s solid performance against Poland will put Les Bleus on the right track for a game against England.

How Deschamps replaced Benzema

Didier Deschamps’ tactical choices at this World Cup have been largely consistent; in addition to a strange defeat against Tunisia. The French side usually lines up in a 4-2-3-1 form.

Hugo Lloris starts in goal, as he has consistently done since 2008. Mike Maignan’s injury means France could be in trouble if injured. Lloris has failed to keep a clean sheet in Qatar, but Deschamps’ faith in his starting goalkeeper is unwavering.

Raphaël Varane and Dayot Upamecano are the two starting centre-backs. Both have been in fine form for their respective clubs. To his left is Theo Hernández de Upamecano. He replaced Lucas Hernández after he suffered a serious injury against Australia 13 minutes into the game.

One of the main talking points for France is the banking of Benjamin Pavard. Despite putting in a good performance against Australia, the Bayern right-back did not make the starting eleven for their games against Denmark or Poland.

Deschamps believes that Pavard has shown a lack of self-criticism, especially given that he has protected him since his arrival at the France national team and that the two have been close in the past.

GetFootballNewsRaphaël Jucobin of France

Sevilla’s Jules Koundé replaced him even though he normally plays centre-back, but he has played magnificently for France. It will be an ongoing fight for Pavard to regain his starting job.

Aurelien Tchouameni and Adrien Rabiot get the two starting positions in midfield, amid some controversy. Some said that Eduardo Camavinga could fill a starting job, or that Matteo Guendouzi could emerge as a leading candidate for Les Bleus. However, it seems that Deschamps made the right decision. The two number sixes have impressed in Qatar, adding an extra layer of security to the France goal.

Giroud, who is destroying Serie A with Milan, assumes the forward role, as he usually does with his club. Although he is 36 years old, he has not played like this in Qatar. He has agreed with Deschamps that he is still an elite lethal striker who should be given any space.

Deschamps usually backs Giroud with Ousmane Dembele and Mbappe on the wings, and Antoine Griezmann as a center forward. Mbappé has scored 26 goals in total in 29 games this season, while Dembele has scored five goals and nine assists in 25 games. No wonder two has wreaked havoc on the wings. Despite struggling at times with a slow Atleti team, Griezmann gets the crucial position of attacking midfielder.

Wing play wins caps for France

One of France’s greatest qualities is lethality on the wings. With Mbappé, Dembele, Hernández and Koundé on the wings, France have all the firepower they need to score loads of goals.

That is why Giroud is relatively little involved in the French offensive. Despite scoring three goals in Qatar, he hasn’t touched the ball more than 20 times in any of his matches. His presence in the box helps create space as he makes use of his consistent finishing.

It’s a drastic change from the days when Benzema led France into battle. He is heavily involved in offense at both the club and country level. With Carlo Ancelotti, he is the center forward in a three-man partnership with Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo. But with Deschamps, Benzema has played alongside Mbappé or alone.

Benzema likes to link up with midfield and combine with wingers to score team goals, but Giroud is more of a poacher who can finish everything in the box.

It could be argued that Giroud’s success shows that France could be better off without Benzema. Giroud has mostly stayed in the box, unlike Benzema, giving France more channels to attack. France does not get that extra mobility on the ground that Benzema gives them with his superior passes. But, with a showdown with England on the way, Giroud’s goalscoring ability and dangerousness inside 18 will give them an extra boost.

Photo credit: IMAGO/Icon Sportswire