The French senior men’s team could only make it to the semi-final stage of the 2024 European Championship, although perhaps they can be bettered by their younger compatriots when it comes to football at the Olympic Games. They can count on home advantage and will kick off against USA at the Stade de Marseille.
Thierry Henry is the current coach of the France Under-21 team and it made sense for him to take the reins of a squad which includes Alexandre Lacazette, Loïc Badé and Jean-Philippe Mateta among the numbers. Mateta in particular had an impressive campaign with Crystal Palace last season and could well be among the tournament top scorers.
Loïc Badé operates for Sevilla and will bring experience to the defensive line, while it’s also worth looking out for Michael Olise who has recently made a big money move from Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich. However, there will be expectations when it comes to this side and there’s a chance that United States can make an impact in this opener.
Walker Zimmerman, Miles Robinson and Djordje Mihailovic are the overage players who have been selected for a squad who predominantly play their football in the MLS, although forward Kevin Paredes is worth mentioning and the Wolfsburg forward could cause opposition defences a problem, starting with France.