Mbappé puts World Cup above all as Les Bleus land in the US

Stars and Stripes, meet Les Bleus

The squad touched down in the US on Wednesday and held their first training session under real heat, the kind that will define this World Cup. The base is set, the acclimatisation has begun, and the countdown to Senegal is on. (1)

Mbappé: the World Cup comes before everything

Kylian Mbappé has made his position brutally clear: he would sign "in indelible marker" to trade personal stats for a World Cup win. No hedging, no diplomacy. He also weighed in on Didier Deschamps' future beyond the tournament, calling any talk of the manager leaving "ugly". (4) (5)

Deschamps reins in Lucas Hernandez

Lucas Hernandez made headlines by talking up France's attacking firepower a little too loudly. Deschamps rang him directly: "You mustn't say things like that." The message from the top is clear, confidence is fine, arrogance is not. (8)

Henry names France favourites, Saliba gets a special mention

Thierry Henry believes France are the team to beat. He pointed to the last two World Cup finals as proof, namechecked Spain, Argentina, Portugal, and England as threats, and suggested William Saliba could end the summer as a world champion. He did not forget Germany: "I wish Nagelsmann all the best, unless they play against France." (6)

Fatigue data raises a red flag

BBC statistics have France at the top of a list no one wants to lead: most minutes played across the squad over the past year. No other nation heading into this World Cup has a more fatigued group of players. (9)

No miracle cure for the heat

Maxence Lacroix and Brice Samba were blunt, there is "no miracle recipe" for coping with the conditions in the US. The team know the temperatures will be a factor and are managing it day by day. (7)

Olise linked with PSG, Bayern say no

A rumour has surfaced connecting Michael Olise with a move to PSG, but Bayern Munich are not interested in letting the French international leave. For now, expect him to stay in Bavaria. (3)

Fan reactions

Reddit is deep in Round of 16 talk, with fans debating which teams are genuine locks to go that far and which group-stage favourites have flaws waiting to be exposed. The consensus seems to be that the gap between the "obvious" and the "vulnerable" is smaller than it looks. Join the discussion