Who should play up front for France? It's time for Didier Deschamps to decide

Deschamps has to pick a balanced team while juggling the talents of Mbappé, Giroud, Dembélé, Griezmann, Lacazette, Payet and Martial – among others

By Adam White and Eric Devin for Get French Football News

France’s narrow victory over Bulgaria on Saturday night means Didier Deschamps has won more games as the Les Blues manager than anyone else, edging above Michel Hidalgo and Raymond Domenech’s record of 41 wins. The 1-0 win in Sofia also means France can guarantee their place at the World Cup next summer by beating Belarus at home on Tuesday night. Sitting one point clear of Sweden before the final fixtures, France are almost certain to be in the draw for the group stage come December, but Deschamps is still far from sure about the squad and starting 11 he will employ in Russia.

Balance has always been crucial for Deschamps. Despite the ludicrous levels of talent at his disposal, he has avoided the temptation of desperately cramming his best players into his team, as Sven-Göran Eriksson did with his midfielders while in charge of England. Deschamps’ use of Paul Pogba is perhaps an exception to that rule, but he tends to prioritise his system and the balance of the team above defaulting to the pound-for-pound quality of individual players. A good example of this is the way he has persisted with Olivier Giroud and Moussa Sissoko, most notably during Euro 2016.

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