Nkunku, Saliba to start? Possible France playing XI vs Israel according to French press

Here is a look at how the French media expects Les Bleus to line up in their Nations League game against Israel tonight. France will be without the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe, Adrien Rabiot and N’Golo Kante for this clash, and coach Didier Deschamps has chosen to appoint Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni as captain.

L’Equipe thinks that Chelsea’s Christopher Nkunku will start on the left side in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with former Crystal Palace (and now Bayern) star Michael Olise in the centre and Ousmane Dembele on the right.

Arsenal’s William Saliba is expected to partner Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate in the heart of defence, with Barca’s Jules Kounde at right back and Theo Hernandez on the left.

Predicted France starting lineup vs Israel 2024

Nkunku has mostly been restricted to appearances off the bench for Chelsea in the Premier League this season, with Blues coach Enzo Maresca opting to play Nicolas Jackson upfront and the trio of Cole Palmer, Jadon Sancho and Noni Madueke behind the Spaniard.

Read more

List of All 30 Nominees for Ballon D’Or 2023/24- Club wise breakdown (7 from RMA, 4 from Arsenal & MCFC)

Here is a club-wise breakdown of the full list of 30 nominees for the 2024 Ballon D’Or (23/24 football season). The club names of the nominees are the clubs as on the date of the nomination (for example, Kylian Mbappe played the 23/24 season for PSG, but is currently a Real Madrid player as of 24/25)

Among the Premier League clubs, Arsenal and Man City have 4 nominees for the 23/24 Ballon d’Or, followed by 1 each from Aston Villa & Chelsea. No Manchester United or Liverpool player was nominated for the Bdor in 2024.

Bdor all 30 Nominees for 2024 by club

Real Madrid (7)– Bellingham, Carvajal, Kroos, Rudiger, Valverde, Vini Jr & Mbappe

Man City (4)– Dias, Foden, Haaland and Rodri

Arsenal (4)– Saka, Rice, Saliba and Odegaard

Read more

Saliba, Cucurella, Walker in Euro 2024 Team of the Tournament (all Premier League based back four)

The official Euro 2024 team of the tournament has been announced by governing body UEFA, and not surprisingly, is dominated by champions Spain, with six of the eleven players coming from La Furia Roja.

Spain went 7/7 to win the tournament and dominate the attacking part of this TOTM- the midfield troika (Fabian Ruiz, Dani Olmo, Rodri) is all Spanish, as are two of the top three upfront (Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal). Olmo was not originally in the Spanish starting XI, but came into it after Pedri suffered a tournament ending injury following a Kroos tackle in their last eight clash against Germany.

Interestingly, the back four of this TOTM all play in the Premier League- left back Marc Cucurella (Chelsea), centre backs William Saliba (Arsenal) & Manuel Akanji (Man City) and right back Kyle Walker (also MCFC).

Akanji and Musiala are the only two non-semifinalists in this TOTM. There is however no Dutch player in this XI.

Euro 2024 Team of the Tournament Best XI

UEFA Euro 2024 team of the tournament (with club names and nationality)

Goalkeeper– Maignan (FRA/AC Milan/Serie A)

Defenders– Cucurella (ESP/Chelsea), Saliba (FRA/Arsenal), Akanji (SUI/Man City) and Walker (ENG/Man City)- all Premier League

Read more