Since Monday, November 11, the Bleus have a last family reunion in 2019 in Clairefontaine, with the menu the last qualifying matches for Euro-2020 against Moldova and Albania, without Blaise Matuidi who gave up on injury.
The first blues are at Clairefontaine! #BlueHeart pic.twitter.com/4BEszW5nMz
Team France ⭐⭐ (@equipedefrance) November 11, 2019The tricolor group arrived in the middle of the afternoon in its famous "Château" Yvelines, starting point of the rally that will take him to the Stade de France Thursday and Tirana Sunday, with the ticket in the viewfinder for the Euro .
The end of the year course will begin as each time with a passage in front of the medical staff for the players in delicacy with their body. Released injured ribs during the victory of Juventus Turin Sunday night against AC Milan (1-0), Matuidi has not even made the trip.
"The exams conducted Monday morning in Turin confirmed an injury that made it impossible for Blaise Matuidi to be on the field on Thursday and Sunday," the Federation said in the early afternoon.
The coach Didier Deschamps has decided to call in his place the Arsenal player Mattéo Guendouzi, initially summoned with the Espoirs, as in September when he had to replace Paul Pogba.
@ MATUIDIBlaise (ribs) will not participate in the next two games of the Blues. To replace him, Didier Deschamps decided to call @MatteoGuendouzi 🇫🇷 #FiersdetreBleus
➡ https://t.co/p4HGUWU53C pic.twitter.com/dMR6u79vEx
The other concern is Tanguy Ndombélé, who came out at halftime against Sheffield (1-1) on Saturday with Tottenham after feeling a "groin pain", according to his coach. Since then, nothing has filtered about the health of the former Lyonnais, arrived Monday in Clairefontaine.
The Mbappé query
Kylian Mbappé, surprise package with the Paris SG this weekend in the league, will it be present? The 21-year-old world champion "will not move with the group to Brest as a precaution for an embarrassment to the right adductors felt during the match against Bruges" in the Champions League, announced his club Friday, the eve of match.
Questioned in Brittany, the Parisian coach Thomas Tuchel did not question the presence in selection of the attacker. But in October, Mbappé had also joined the Blues before throwing in the towel, feeling inadequately recovered from an injury.
Here again, Deschamps has a plan B nearby because Jonathan Ikoné, called in A during the last two gatherings, is also in Clairefontaine with the Espoirs.
On the side of good news, the coach gets his precious N'Golo Kanté, back in the team of Chelsea Saturday against Crystal Palace (2-0) for a first tenure for a month.
Mendy, one year later
Weakened by several injuries, the small middle of the "Blues" has not played with the Blues since the victory against Iceland (4-0), late March in European qualifiers. Called in October, he could not honor his summons in Iceland (1-0) and against Turkey (1-1) due to an embarrassment to the adductors, which had exasperated the coach of Chelsea.
"'NG' has had time to heal himself, he was in the group this week, he's restored, I'll make sure he's managed, but once a player is available in a club, it's normal that 'he is part of the group,' Deschamps justified Thursday when he announced his list of 23.
Among them, the ghost Benjamin Mendy is surely the one who will have the widest smile, Monday at Clairefontaine, a place that the defender of Manchester City has not attended for more than a year.
Missing the match sheet Sunday in Liverpool (3-1 defeat), the 25-year-old will not have heavy legs like Steve Mandanda and Leo Dubois, opponents at the Marseille-Lyon electric (2-1) Sunday night.
At the end of the afternoon, the OM goalkeeper and OL defender will take part in a first training session which promises to be light for them, while those who have played little or nothing this weekend will have right to a further session.
This should be the case especially for Olivier Giroud, still scotched on the bench of Chelsea Saturday, and for Clement Lenglet, not used with FC Barcelona, unlike Antoine Griezmann holder in the victory (4-1) against Celta Vigo .
With AFP