Emmanuel Petit snubs Kylian Mbappe as he names England-France combined XI ahead of Euro 2024
Ahead of UEFA Euro 2024, Arsenal legend and France World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit has snubbed Kylian Mbappe while picking an England-France combined XI. Mbappe is arguably one of the most important players in Les Bleus, having made his debut for the national team in 2017 at the age of 18. He has since scored 47 goals and provided 33 assists in just 78 caps.
This has done little to convince Emmanuel Petit, though. The former France international, who had 64 caps in his time, decided to pick Phil Foden of England in Mbappe's place. He also opted for Harry Kane ahead of Olivier Giroud. He said to bestonlinepokersites.ltd (via The Sun):
“Harry Kane would get in the France team because he’s a great goal scorer. I have huge respect for Olivier Giroud but Kane is one of the best strikers of the last 10 years. Even if we have Kylian Mbappe on the left or Ousmane Dembele on the right, that doesn’t mean that Phil Foden cannot play instead of Mbappe.
"Foden has been amazing this season. He has become the boss of Manchester City. And on the other side, you have Bukayo Saka who has been tremendous for the last four years for Arsenal."
Petite went on to give England only two more slots in the midfield, while handing the entire defense to France, adding:
"I think in the midfield area there are more positions that England players can take. This is where we have talented players, but not enough in my opinion. Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice can play, no problem at all.”
It will come as a surprise for Petit to pick Phil Foden ahead of Kylian Mbappe on the left flank. The Manchester City winger has only four goals and eight assists in 34 caps, compared to Mbappe's numbers. Kylian Mbappe has also won the 2018 World Cup with France and helped them to the final in 2022 while Foden is yet to win a trophy with England.
Kylian Mbappe leads France to 3-0 win over Luxembourg ahead of EURO 2024
Ahead of their participation in EURO 2024, France began their set of friendlies with a 3-0 win over Luxembourg on June 5. Mbappe set up two goals on the night, one for Randal Kolo Muani and another for Jonathan Clauss who scored an absolute belter from 20 yards.
Late in the day, the French captain added his own name to the scoresheet to hand Les Bleus a comprehensive win. He was easily the best player on the pitch, and he will look to take his performance into the EURO 2024 tournament.
Before they begin preparations in Germany, Didier Deschamps' side will face Canada in another friendly on June 9. In EURO 2024, they will face Austria, the Netherlands, and Poland in Group D.