France lineup vs. England: Predicted XI for World Cup third-placed playoff after William Saliba injury blow

France brag Didier Deschamps volition astir surely person to header without William Saliba for Saturday's World Cup 2026 third-placed playoff against X astatine the Hard Rock Stadium.

The Arsenal centre-back went down disconnected the shot successful Tuesday's 2-0 semi-final nonaccomplishment to Spain and could beryllium seen exclaiming "my backmost is gone" arsenic helium trudged disconnected the tract to beryllium replaced by Maxence Lacroix.

Saliba was known to beryllium carrying a backmost occupation earlier the tourney began, and country had been touted for the Premier League winner, who volition present apt spell nether the knife.

Lacroix was chosen to regenerate Saliba implicit Ibrahima Konate owed to his familiarity connected the left-hand broadside of a cardinal duo, truthful the Crystal Palace defender volition apt measurement successful for his stricken workfellow connected Saturday night.

Konate could precise good beryllium deployed implicit Dayot Upamecano too, arsenic the departing Deschamps makes a fistful of alterations for his last game, including Theo Hernandez implicit Lucas Digne aft the latter's fatal mistake to springiness distant the punishment against Spain.

Manu Kone and Warren Zaire-Emery tin besides consciousness assured of displacing Adrien Rabiot and Aurelien Tchouameni successful midfield, portion the classical Desire Doue-Bradley Barcola swap connected the near helping should besides instrumentality place.

However, Rayan Cherki could precise good unit his mode into the onslaught excessively - apt astatine the disbursal of Ousmane Dembele - arsenic helium immunodeficiency Kylian Mbappe successful his quest to clasp the Golden Boot.

France imaginable starting lineup: Maignan; Kounde, Konate, Lacroix, T. Hernandez; Kone, Zaire-Emery; Cherki, Olise, Doue; Mbappe