Against Uruguay in a friendly in Paris on Tuesday night, France will be looking to make sure their UEFA Nations League elimination isn’t the lasting impression from a year in which the World Champions swept all before them.
International friendly
Stade de France, Paris
France – Uruguay 
– kick-off at 21:00 CET
Despite losing to the Netherlands in their UEFA Nations League clash in Rotterdam on Friday night, Les Bleus were still on top of the League A Group 1 table. Until, that is, Virgil Van Dijk clinched a crucial point against Germany that saw the Oranje pip France – on head-to-head record – to a place in the finals in Portugal in June 2019.
Serious business
Had France followed up their World Cup win with qualification for the Nations League Final 4, Tuesday night’s friendly against La Celeste would doubtless have been a much more light-hearted affair than it now is for Didier Deschamps and his men, who will be out to boost morale ahead of a four-month lay-off before the next international break, in March 2019.
“Friday’s defeat showed us up in every department,” admitted the man who has lifted the World Cup as a player and a coach. “But on Tuesday we have a chance to end the year on a positive note.”
‘Another match, another context’
Despite recent blows to their morale, Les Bleus can take confidence from that fact that Uruguay were one of their victims on the way to World Cup glory – a 2-0 win in the quarter-finals – but Deschamps is not expecting a walk in the park against a team that this time will have its fearsome strike duo of Edinson Cavani (who missed the World Cup clash through injury) and Luis Suarez reunited.
“This is another match, another context. It’s true that we dominated Uruguay in a lot of areas, but Uruguay always have quality – it’s in their DNA. They fight hard and never give an inch,” explained Deschamps. “And they also have the Cavani-Suarez duo. They are a solid South-American side and they pack a wallop.”
Changes at the back
To get the job done – and give some disappointed France fans something to smile about – Deschamps is tipped to switch back to his World Cup-winning front four of Kylian Mbappé, Antoine Griezmann, Blaise Matuidi and Olivier Giroud in a 4-2-3-1, with Olympique Lyonnais’ Tanguy Ndombele to start in place of the inured Paul Pogba.
Captain Hugo Lloris will work between the sticks while Olympique de Marseille’s Adil Rami is tipped to start alongside the returning Mamadou Sakho – who last turned out for his country in a 4-2 win over Russia all the way back in March 2016- in the centre of defence. OL’s Ferland Mendy is tipped to start at left-back while Benjamin Pavard should patrol the right flank.
Injury hit
Meanwhile, Uruguay boss Oscar Tabarez has a raft of injuries – four starting and two replacement defenders as well as first-choice ‘keeper – to contend with as his side look to bounce back from a 1-0 friendly defeat to Brazil in London on Friday.
Probable teams
France: Lloris (c); Pavard, Rami, M. Sakho, Fer. Mendy; N. Kanté, Ndombélé; Mbappé, Griezmann, Matuidi; Giroud
Uruguay: Campana; M.Suarez, B. Mendez, Caceres, Laxalt; Vecino, Torreira, Valverde; Bentancur; Cavani, L. Suarez (c)
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