France’s Bayern block

It has been a complicated build-up to the 2022 World Cup for France, but fortunately for head coach Didier Deschamps, he has a Bayern Munich bedrock to build on.

Karim Benzema is the latest withdrawal from a squad already decimated by the losses of Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante and RB Leipzig’s Christopher Nkunku.

Eintracht Frankfurt’s Kolo Muani has been called up as cover, but it is the Bayern quartet of Lucas Hernandez, Dayot Upamecano, Benjamin Pavard and Kingsley Coman keeping Les Bleus’ spirits high on the eve of their title defence – not least in view of the German record champions’ extraordinary record of having provided a finalist in every edition of the World Cup since 1982.

Corentin Tolisso continued that proud tradition four years ago, and France’s hopes are henceforth hinged on a selection of success-schooled stars who could account for a third of Deschamps’ standard starting XI in Qatar.

Form being such an important factor – even more so coming into an anomalous mid-season World Cup, when the national team coaches have had little over a week with their players – Deschamps will be comforted by the state of his Bayern quartet, as bundesliga.com explains…

Lucas Hernandez
Position: Left-back/ centre-back
2022/23 Bundesliga appearances: 7

If Hernandez has had his share of injuries for the season, he has timed it to perfection as far as Deschamps is concerned. After starting the first four fixtures of the season, in which Bayern conceded just three goals and scored 16, Hernandez picked up an adductor strain after netting in the UEFA Champions League win against Barcelona. He missed just shy of two months, but returned for Bayern’s final three games of the calendar year.

Julian Nagelsmann fed him back into his team patiently, starting with a 26-minute outing in the 3-2 win over Hertha Berlin. No goals fell on his watch, after he took the place of the injured Alphonso Davies at left-back, and he held his position for almost an hour against Werder Bremen before being given a rest. He raised his minutes to 72 at Schalke before linking up with his national team, where he will be expected to add to his 32 caps in Qatar.

Hernandez has returned from injury to become a fixture of the Bayern defence, just in time for the start of the World Cup. – Christian Kaspar-Bartke/Bundesliga/Bundesliga Collection via Getty Images

Unlike some of his heavily-burdened teammates – not least his brother Theo, who has played 13 games for Italian club AC Milan this season – Hernandez has had time to find peak condition, and he will be pressuring his sibling for a place in a Bayern-inspired back line.

Dayot Upamecano
Position: Central defender
2022/23 Bundesliga appearances: 15

That defence will be bossed by Upamecano, who has missed just eight minutes of Bayern’s Bundesliga campaign so far – and here is why: with 170 tackles won, he is ranked sixth in the division – the highest ranked defender – while his 60.28 per cent tackle success rate is also up there with the best. On the ball a total of 1,385 times, he has had more possession than all but one other player in the Bundesliga this season.

It is not difficult to see why either, with Upamecano boasting a 92.74 per cent pass success rate – fourth across the division – initiating attack after attack from his deep position. The 24-year-old is understandably one of the first names Nagelsmann puts on