Aurelién Tchouameni is one of Real Madrid’s French superstars.
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France is gearing up to host the Olympic Games this summer, but their hopes of a home gold medal in soccer have taken a significant blow as Spanish club Real Madrid are set to refuse permission to release their players, according to French newspaper L’Equipe.
That is a major setback for coach Thierry Henry given the number of available players who he could have hoped to feature in his side from the LALIGA leaders. They include midfielders Aurelién Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga as well as defender Ferland Mendy.
On top of that, speculation continues to link Kylian Mbappé with a move to Real Madrid this summer, and the French national hero would seem to be subject to the same rules.
As such, France could be without several potential key players this summer. Players for the Olympics must be under the age of 23, or be one of three ‘wildcard’ picks. Le Monde had speculated that Mbappé, alongside another Spanish soccer star, Antoine Griezmann of Atlético Madrid, could make the cut as wildcards.
Olympic soccer squad complications
The reality of Olympic soccer means that clubs are under no obligations from FIFA to release their players for the tournament, as they would be for a World Cup or regional tournament.
There is also the added complication of the Olympic Games coinciding with the UEFA European Championship. The Euros will end with the final in Germany on July 14th, only 10 days before the soccer tournament at the Olympics begins.
Following the conclusion of the Olympics, with the men’s gold medal match on August 9th, the season will already be starting for many European leagues. In the case of Real Madrid, a kick-off date is not yet confirmed in the Spanish competition, though last season it started on August 11th.
“I have no certainties. I am at the mercy of a yes or a no from a club,” coach Henry said in a press conference on Thursday, reflecting on the reality when it comes to selecting his squad. “And then if they agree and then change coach in the meantime, who is to say I would still have him?”
Speaking on the challenge of playing in various competitions so close together, French senior team coach Didier Deschamps reflected this week, “it is very difficult from a psychological and physical viewpoint to take part in two competitions like that one after the other, in the summer, without having any holiday.”
Mbappé’s uncertain future
Now nearing the final three months of his contract with Paris Saint-Germain, French national team captain Kylian Mbappé looks almost certain to leave his home country for the first time in his career.
He has scored 46 goals in 75 appearances for his country, winning a World Cup in the process, and remains the leading figure for the sport in what would have been a landmark moment this summer.
“I’ve always had the ‘Olympic flame’,” Mbappé said in an interview on Envoyé spécial on French TV channel France 2, reported by Olympics.com. “Along with the FIFA World Cup, the Olympic Games are the biggest sports event in the world. The Games in Paris, 100 years after [the last time they were held in the city]… mean the world to me. The idea of competing at the Games with France would be an extraordinary opportunity. It’s actually more of a dream than an opportunity.”
“We have heard Kylian Mbappé say that the Olympic Games are the Holy Grail of sports. That says everything,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach responded.
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