Antoine Griezmann has been declared unable to play in France’s matches against Germany and Chile due to an ankle injury, which has put an end to his streak of appearing in 84 games in a row for Les Bleus.
The Atletico Madrid player will not be present in the French team for the first time since November 2016 as France prepares for their last friendly matches before the Euro 2024 tournament from June 14 to July 14, 2024.
Lazio’s Matteo Guendouzi has been selected for the first time since the previous World Cup, taking the place of Griezmann who has played 127 times for France and scored 44 goals.
Coach Didier Deschamps has described Griezmann as “not irreplaceable but essential” for the France team, but accepted the advice of the team doctor, as stated by the French football federation.
The 32-year-old missed four matches for Atletico before coming back last week and scoring against Inter Milan in the Champions League, leading the Spanish team to the quarter-finals on penalties.
He also entered the game at half-time in the 3-0 loss to Barcelona in La Liga on Sunday.
“Antoine has an ankle problem, which flared up even though he played 45 minutes last night,” Deschamps said.
Guendouzi has represented France seven times, scoring one goal. His last appearance was in the final group match in the Qatar World Cup, a 1-0 defeat against Tunisia.
“Finding a player with similar attributes to Antoine is very, very, very difficult,” Deschamps mentioned.
“Finding a replacement for his role is very, very, very difficult. We will organize things differently.”
There are doubts about the availability of AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan and Paris Saint-Germain winger Ousmane Dembele is recovering from a punctured eardrum.
Deschamps expressed optimism for Adrien Rabiot, Lucas Hernandez and Ibrahima Konate.
Liverpool defender Konate has not played in the last three matches for the English club and was also absent for France in September and November due to injury.
“Ibou had some minor issues, he’s coming off a season where he played a lot,” mentioned Deschamps.
France will face European hosts Germany on March 23 in Lyon and Chile three days later in Marseille.
AFP
