Two days after attending the AC Milan – PSG (2-1) meeting in the Champions League, Espoirs coach Thierry Henry gave his list for the next two matches, Friday November 17 in Austria on behalf of the 4th day of the Euro 2025 qualifiers, then South Korea in a friendly match three days later in Le Havre (6:30 p.m.).
The 1998 world champion is, in particular, deprived of his captain Warren Zaire-Emery called for the first time by Didier Deschamps for the two matches of the French team against Gibraltar (November 18) and Greece (November 21) in the qualifiers of Euro 2024. A hard blow for the Bleuets. “I’m very happy for Warren. I hope he will say hello to me in Clairefontaine, laughs Thierry Henry in a playful mood on the Chaîne l’Equipe. He deserves it with his performances, his education, how he behaves… I could talk about him for hours. I take my hat off to the parents, he is very well looked after. I hope I don’t see him again and that he stays with the A’s as long as possible.”
Defender Castello Lukeba, who plays for RB Leipzig, will take the captaincy. “He runs the defense, he talks a lot on and off the field, he is good,” says the coach. It’s a fairly logical sequence. » Four changes were made in the team compared to the last meeting. Isaak Touré, Jeanuël Belocian, Ismaël Doucouré and Georginio Rutter appear. In front, the coach can count on his fiery attack with Barcola (PSG), Cherki (Lyon), Kalimuendo (Rennes), Tel (Bayern Munich) and Wahi (Lens). “It will be the competition ahead,” concludes Henry.
After 3 matches, the Bleuets are at the top of their playoff group with 3 wins in as many matches and a goal average of +14 (15 goals scored and one conceded).
The list of selected ones:
Goalkeepers: Remains (Toulouse), Risser (Dijon), Nkambadio (Paris FC).
Defenders: Gusto (Chelsea), Toure (Lorient), Lukeba (Leipzig), Yoro (Lille), Belocian (Rennes), Merlin (Nantes), Matsima (Monaco), Sildillia (Fribourg)
Midfield: Akliouche (Monaco), Cherki (Lyon), Doucouré (Strasbourg), Gourna-Douath (RB Salzburg), Lepenant (Lyon), Millot (Stuttgart), Ugochukwu (Chelsea).
Attackers: Barcola (PSG), Kalimuendo (Rennes), Rutter (Leeds), Tel (Bayern Munich), Wahi (Lens).
