Ousmane Dembélé to step up as France captain in Kylian Mbappé’s absence

Ousmane Dembélé (29) is expected to take over the captain’s armband in the absence of Kylian Mbappé (27), injured and ruled out of the matches against Belgium and Italy, according to reports in L’Équipe.

The decision makes sense, as Zinédine Zidane’s vision of the captaincy is based on seniority rather than leadership. Dembélé, who has 68 caps to his name, is therefore set to stand in for Les Bleus’ number 10, himself a 107-time international. Adrien Rabiot (31) and Jules Koundé (27), who have made 67 and 57 appearances respectively for the French national team, will meanwhile temporarily move up the pecking order.

The same goes for Mike Maignan (31) and his 49 caps; he is the only player in the squad called up by Zidane – apart from Mbappé – to have captained the side, on three occasions. The new Les Bleus manager, who has a reputation for prioritising experience over other factors, is therefore sticking to his approach. It now remains to be seen whether this choice will bear fruit.

GFFN | Léo Aschi