France have insane attack and Michael Olise is so good he was voted better than 61-goal Harry Kane

France have been told they have the best squad at the World Cup – but they’re still not favourites to win the tournament.

Les Blues came within a whisker of defending trophy four years ago having won in 2018, but lost to Argentina in the final on penalties in 2022.

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Didier Deschamps added his country’s second star as manager in 2018 to add to their first World Cup that he lifted as a player in 1998.

The 57-year-old coach has already confirmed he will step down after this tournament, with his squad motivated to end his reign on a high.

France arguably have the toughest World Cup group on paper, with clashes against Senegal, Norway and Iraq.

However, under Deschamps, Les Blues have only ever been eliminated from the tournament by the eventual World Cup winners – either side of their triumph in Russia – and boast an embarrassment of riches across their 26-man squad.

‘France have the best squad’

talkSPORT football expert Andy Brassell said: “I had Spain as my favourites, but France do have the best squad.

“France definitely have the best squad. There’s absolutely no question about that.

“I think they’re better, like, balanced than they were in either Euro 2024 or World Cup 2022.”

Part of that balance has been due to the emergence of Michael Olise, who is taking part in his first major international tournament.

The Bayern Munich winger has scored 22 goals and registered 31 assists across all competitions for his club this season already.

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Michael Olise – One to Watch

“Michael Olise has added something completely different to France,” Brassell continued. “He is something they didn’t have at either Euro 2024 or World Cup 2022. Someone who can pick the lock.

“They maybe lacked a little bit of craft in midfield, to be perfectly honest, which seems a strange thing to say when you look at how many great attacking players they’ve got.

“But look, you look at his season, 15 goals, 19 assists, just in the Bundesliga in 23 starts.

“There was a survey in Kicker magazine recently, an anonymous survey amongst Bundesliga players, and they voted him, his fellow professional players, the best player in the Bundesliga. That’s ahead of Harry Kane. That’s how good he is.

“I think especially once it gets into the knockout part of the tournament, you’re looking at Olise as someone who can produce that little bit of magic.”

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Who plays down the middle?

Deschamps has a task fitting in captain Kylian Mbappe alongside Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele to play with Olise in attack.

Both Mbappe and Dembele are stars who came to prominence on the wing but have been converted into central striking roles at Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, respectively.

When asked who will get the nod to lead the line, Brassell replied: “I think it has to be Ousmane Dembélé, really. And the question really is whether they make it into a front four rather than a front three, which would not be very Didier Deschamps.

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“But look, he’s got midfielders that he really trusts, especially Manu Kone, who again has added something a little different, the Roma midfielder. He covers so much ground. It’s absolutely unbelievable.

“There’s no need really to start N’Golo Kante necessarily with Kone in the picture.

“I think with Mbappe, with Ousmane Dembélé, with Michael Olise, with maybe even Rayan Cherki, who knows, you’ve got players who are not fixed to a particular position.

“I think that makes them not just a team with endless possibilities and a lot of goal power, but a team that’s really hard to defend against because you don’t know where the players are going to pop up next.”

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