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After an average previous international break- where Turkey inflicted a 2-0 loss on the World Champions, Les Bleus began the ongoing set of fixtures with a positive 4-1 victory against Albania. However, this game sparked an early controversy when UEFA Staff played Andorra's national anthem instead of Albania's.
Although, the situation was brought under control despite Albanian fans voicing their protest. The game progressed after a 10-minute delay, with the hosts cruising to a comfortable 4-1 win against Kuq e Zinjte.
Now with the Albania fiasco being a thing of past, Didier Deschamps has turned his attention towards ensuring that French side concludes this international break with a victory against Andorra.
Team News
France:
Les Blues manager Didier Deschamps had to deal with a few selection headaches with Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele unavailable due to injury issues. To accentuate the problems, Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti withdrew from the squad with a foot injury.
Despite the absence of several mainstays, a strong reserve has allowed France to fill the void left by superstars during this international break. In the absence of Kylian Mbappe, Kingsley Koman stepped up with a brace in the last match.
Thankfully, Deschamps has no suspensions to deal with before the Andorra clash.
Suspensions: None
Injuries: Samuel Umtiti (left France squad with a foot injury)
Andorra:
With a vast difference in qualities between themselves and the French XI, Andorra will try to do better than the 4-0 scoreline they endured in the reverse fixture between these two.
However, there are positive signs emerging from the Andorra squad, who lost with a close margin against Turkey. The Tricolours are expected to organise themselves in a compact low block with Max Llovera and Ildefons Lima being the central defensive partnership.
Andorra manager Koldo Alvarez has a full set of players to select his starting XI from.
Suspensions: None
Injuries: None
Key Players
France: Olivier Giroud
Despite being ignored by Chelsea in favour of other strikers, Olivier Giroud is a prized asset for Didier Deschamps. The 32-year-old, with his brilliant hold-up play and clever movements, is a key figure in Les Blues' attack.
With Andorra almost sure to set up a defensively, Giroud will have to play a big role in aiding his side to break the opposing block of players, bringing his nimble link-up and intelligent runs to the fore. Also, his physical presence in Andorra box will provide a focal point from the full-backs.
Andorra: Ildefons Lima
After being the victims of a 4-0 rout from the World Cup winners last time they faced off, Andorra could end up with a similar scoreline, if not worse, this time as well. Iledfons Lima has a daunting task to patrol his national side's defence against the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and others.
The 39-year-old will be hoping for a miraculous night at Stade de France to restore something for his side from this game.
Prediction
With Andorra's intention to defend deep, France could face a period of frustration against the side who conceded just one goal against Turkey in their previous fixture.
Nevertheless, with the immense quality at Deschamps' disposal, France are expected to register a resounding win against Andorra.
France 4-0 Andorra
