Ousmane Dembélé could return for France, right flank likely | OneFootball

Ousmane Dembélé could make his first France appearance since winning the France Football Ballon d'Or in October when Les Bleus face Brazil on Thursday at 21:00 during their United States tour. According to L'Équipe, Didier Deschamps is reintegrating the Paris forward into his attack and weighing up the role that suits him best.

His last cap was a 36-minute outing in Ukraine on 5 September 2025, a 2-0 win cut short by a right thigh injury that preceded a dispute between PSG and the FFF. The same hamstring kept him out in October, then a calf problem ruled him out in November. France qualified for this summer's World Cup, 11 June to 19 July, without him.

Deschamps views Dembélé as versatile, starting centrally for Paris and able to operate in midfield or on either flank, and with France he has a starting berth plus licence to roam across the front to unsettle opponents. Mbappé, the captain, believes he simply needs his place back.

At Paris he has been a false nine for a year, but in the national team that role belongs to Mbappé. Deschamps will not alter his structure and Mbappé will remain as centre forward until the World Cup, so Dembélé will work from the right. He has not asked to play centrally and accepts his future on the flank.

Now 28, he wants to be a leader in the squad and the Ballon d'Or shifts his status in the dressing room, yet his international output is modest, 57 caps with seven goals and four assists, including three goals in his last 33 caps. For Paris in 2026 he already has eight goals and four assists in all competitions. With three months until the World Cup, this tour is a chance to nail down the right side.

Source: L'Équipe