Full-Back Crisis in the French National Team: Limited Options and Tactical Challenges Put Zidane in a Dilemma

The recent clash between France and Italy saw a clear setback in the French national team's backline, particularly in the two full-back positions, which faced immense difficulties. This was especially evident on the right flank, where Malo Gusto endured a difficult time, once again raising questions about the causes and available solutions for national team coach Zinedine Zidane.

Calls to Develop Sports Academies

Zinedine Zidane has not hidden his concern regarding this position since unveiling his first official squad list, pointing out that the shortage of full-backs has persisted for a long time. Zidane conveyed this issue to the National Technical Directorate of the French Football Federation (FFF), urging them to establish specialized development programs for these roles across youth levels, particularly as France frequently succeeds in producing outstanding wingers or center-backs, only to later repurpose them as full-backs to plug gaps.

Former international François Clerc, who earned 13 caps as a right-back, believes the position requires exceptional and hard-to-find physical and tactical attributes. He explained that it demands supreme speed, the ability to face the opponent's most dangerous attackers, alongside precision in crossing and defensive positioning, making the discovery of standout talents in this specialty a rarity.

Restricted Options and a Lack of Ready Alternatives

In light of this reality, Zidane finds himself facing extremely limited options; Barcelona's Jules Koundé remains the only guarantee with the requisite experience, despite his primary development as a center-back. Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu also emerges as an additional option, though he is another product of the center-back academy before shifting to the right flank.

As for other names such as Malo Gusto, Sacha Boey, Lorenz Assignon, and Kiliann Sildillia, they suffer either from a lack of regular club minutes or from not proving sufficient international readiness. This prompted the manager to call up youngster Saël Kumbedi, who plays in the German second division. On the left flank, experiments continue with Adrien Truffert and El Hadji Malick Diouf, without yet achieving a decisive and stable defensive formula.

Betting on the Future and Rejecting Stopgap Fixes

Despite suggestions from several former internationals such as Jocelyn Angloma—who advocates relying on the defensive experience of the duo Lucas and Theo Hernández, as well as Ferland Mendy, and prioritizing defensive duties first—Zidane leans toward ruling out older players such as Jonathan Clauss or Lucas Digne, preferring instead to focus on building a future generation in anticipation of Euro 2028 and the 2030 World Cup.

Zidane has also made his stance clear regarding deploying Warren Zaïre-Emery as a right-back, despite his success in filling that void with his club Paris Saint-Germain. He emphasized his desire to keep players in their natural midfield positions, refusing makeshift solutions that could compromise the team's technical balance.