L’Équipe: Les Bleus Test a New Trio, Mbappé as Striker with Bakula and Choupo-Moting on the Wings

The authoritative French media L’Équipe reports that the French national team has been practicing a new offensive combination, with captain Mbappé playing as the number 9 striker, assisted by his former Paris Saint-Germain teammate Bakula and Bayern Munich’s Choupo-Moting.

The French national team is currently preparing for the UEFA Nations League matches. On September 6th, local European time, they will face Italy in Paris, and on September 9th, they will play against Belgium at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais.

L’Équipe reports that before this training session, the French team’s coaching staff held an internal meeting at Clairefontaine to summarize the issues encountered during the Euro period. Everyone agreed that the biggest problem facing the team was a “lack of attacking dynamism,” which will be the key focus for adjustment in the upcoming games.

Subsequently, in training, Deschamps experimented with a new attacking line-up, with captain Mbappé playing as the number 9 striker, flanked by two 22-year-old rising stars, Paris Saint-Germain’s Bakula and Bayern Munich’s Choupo-Moting.

Mbappé currently plays as a forward at Real Madrid, scoring twice in the last La Liga match. Bakula has performed excellently for Paris Saint-Germain this season, scoring four goals in just 155 minutes over three Ligue 1 matches, including a brace against Montpellier, which earned him praise from Deschamps.

Born in December 2001, Choupo-Moting is looking forward to making his debut for the French national team. This Bayern Munich starlet has made three appearances for Bayern this season, contributing an assist in the DFB-Pokal. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, he starred for the French Olympic team, scoring two goals and providing five assists in six games, showcasing impressive form.