East Rutherford (United States) (AFP) – That France are more than living up to their status as favourites at this World Cup may be down to the goals of captain Kylian Mbappe, but also in a large part to the creative genius of Michael Olise.
Issued on: 01/07/2026 - 06:28
3 min Reading time
There is a sense that, after years of prioritising pragmatism over flair, coach Didier Deschamps has decided to hand the keys to his brilliant attacking players as he aims to end his long reign with another World Cup triumph.That may yet change when it comes to the latter stages and the quality of the opposition increases, but France have been irresistible so far with Olise helping raise them to another level.Les Bleus were at their thrilling best in a 3-0 win over Sweden in New Jersey on Tuesday that made it four wins, and 13 goals scored, so far at the tournament as they eased through to a last-16 tie against Paraguay.Olise has not scored any of those goals, with Mbappe netting two at the MetLife Stadium to move to six in total, and Bradley Barcola getting the other on the day.Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele has four and Desire Doue one, but Olise's display against Sweden was majestic, as he set up two goals to become this World Cup's leading assist provider.The Bayern Munich player did almost break his tournament duck with the game still goalless, but his breathtaking overhead bicycle kick came back off a post -- even Mbappe was in awe at the execution."It was a fantastic bit of skill. Unfortunately it didn't go in, but people come to the stadium to see that kind of thing," Mbappe said.The exciting version of France that has emerged at the end of Deschamps' 14-year tenure can be traced back to a Nations League quarter-final against Croatia in March last year.After losing 2-0 away in the first leg, Deschamps decided to remove one of his three defensive midfielders, and add another forward.Olise, who had made his senior international debut six months earlier off the back of an impressive Olympics, was brought in for the second leg to play in the number 10 role, behind Mbappe.He scored a superb free-kick, sparking a comeback as France went on to win the tie on penalties.'Future Ballon d'Or'
