France’s Great Connector key to their World Cup hopes
Kylian Mbappé is the face of France. The billboard star of the team many have tipped to win the 2026 World Cup. He is, after all, the tournament’s joint-top scorer and the second-top scorer in World Cup history. And yet he might not even be France’s best player at this moment in time.
That could be Michael Olise. He, not Mbappé, embodies the brilliance of this French national team. Not only this, Olise reflects how Didier Deschamps has taken the handbrake off a side that hasn’t always been this fun and exciting. This summer has been something different from Les Bleus and Olise is a big reason why that has been the case.
At club level, Olise has firmly established himself as one of the best wingers in the world over the last two seasons for Bayern Munich. Last season was the best of the 24-year-old’s career to date, registering a combined 34 goals and assists in 32 Bundesliga appearances not to mention 11 in 13 Champions League games.
He is Bayern Munich’s new Arjen Robben, such is his willingness and ability to cut inside off the right wing to pose a goal threat on his left foot. For France, though, Olise operates as a number 10. He has been used as a replacement for Antoine Griezmann and the national team’s creator-in-chief in central areas.
Olise is remarkably two-footed which gives him the ability to go either way. This lends itself to the number 10 position behind a forward line of Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé and one of either Bradley Barcola or Désiré Doué. France’s fluidity and cohesion in the final third of the pitch has been aided by Olise’s role.
Of course, in an alternate timeline Olise is playing for England at the 2026 World Cup. Born in London to British-Nigerian father and a Franco-Algerian mother, he could have played for a range of different national teams, but came through the youth system in the English game, breaking through at Reading before making the move to Crystal Palace.
Had England’s scouts been more proactive in their recruitment of Olise at youth level, he might have been combining with Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane for The Three Lions. France, however, has always been the team Olise has, in his own words, had a “connection” with, and that term is certainly applicable when describing his role for Les Bleus.
Olise is indeed France’s connector. The player who makes things happen for them in the attack, as proven by the tournament-high five assists he has provided in five appearances at the 2026 World Cup so far. In the 3-0 win over Sweden in particular, everything France did well flowed through Olise.
Not only do France boast some of the best attackers in the world, but the profile of their forward line gives them the perfect balance up front. Mbappé is the roadrunner who wants to get in behind opposition defences at every possible opportunity. He’s also a better penalty box poacher than many give him credit for.
Dembélé is the space-filler around Mbappe. The pair dovetail in their movement and Dembélé, like Olise, is capable of going either way such is his natural two-footedness – see his hat trick in the group stage victory over Norway which saw the Ballon d’Or holder use his left and right feet to finish.
Barcola offers verticality and straightline speed to prevent France’s attacking play from becoming predictable while Doué is a natural dribbler, as Paraguay found to their cost in the round of 16. When France needed a different dimension to break down a stubborn low block, Doué was on hand.
Olise’s skill set, however, is the most varied of any French player. He has created more Big Chances than any other player for Les Bleus at this World Cup. Only Barcola has registered more dribbles than the Bayern Munich attacker with Olise a goal threat in his own right, averaging 1.1 shots on target per 90 minutes.
Against a high-calibre opponent like Morocco in the quarter-finals or Spain in the semi-finals should they make it that far, France could find the balance of their midfield tested. So far, Deschamps has used a double pivot behind a front four. Could they be overwhelmed by an opponent using a trio in the centre of the pitch? Spain often use a box midfield, which could be an issue.
With Olise pulling the strings, it might not matter. The 24-year-old might be France’s most important player at this World Cup and he might just be the best player in the world right now. Whether he’s a winger or a number 10, Olise is operating at a level nobody else can match.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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