Rayan Cherki starts, Adrien Rabiot benched in fans’ France XI to face Senegal | OneFootball

According to L'Équipe, more than 175,000 readers have picked their ideal France XI for Tuesday’s 21:00 World Cup opener against Senegal, favouring Rayan Cherki and leaving Adrien Rabiot among the substitutes.

Didier Deschamps has not yet named his team, but the fans’ selection is clear in several areas. Mike Maignan is the overwhelming choice in goal, with William Saliba and Dayot Upamecano leading the vote at centre-back.

In midfield, Aurélien Tchouaméni is seen as indispensable with more than 110,000 votes. He partners N’Golo Kanté in a double pivot rather than Adrien Rabiot.

At full-back, usual starters Jules Koundé and Théo Hernandez are edged out. Malo Gusto draws roughly 99,000 votes on the right, while Lucas Digne collects nearly 127,000 on the left.

Further forward, while Désiré Doué has been tipped to start, readers prefer Cherki. He finishes ahead by nearly 40,000 votes, though the left-wing-only ballot was far tighter.

Up front, Kylian Mbappé is viewed as non-negotiable, receiving 155,899 votes, with about two thirds placing him through the middle. Ousmane Dembélé features on the right, with Michael Olise in a more central role. The Bayern Munich winger attracts more than 170,000 votes, many backing him as a No 10.

Source: L'Équipe