Tchouaméni thigh injury rules him out of Paraguay clash

Tchouaméni out with thigh injury, misses Paraguay clash

Aurélien Tchouaméni will not play against Paraguay in the Round of 32 this Saturday. The midfielder has a thigh injury and is ruled out of the knockout opener (1).

Manu Koné and Adrien Rabiot are the natural replacements in midfield. Deschamps has not yet confirmed who starts alongside the rest of the engine room.

France face Paraguay in the late slot

Kickoff is at 23:00 in New York. Paraguay stand between your team and the last 16, with Canada or Morocco waiting after (2).

Rayan Cherki is in the squad for the match.

Fan reactions

The late kickoff has not gone down well. The World Cup thread on r/MCFC lists the 22:00 UK start with a quiet resignation, but the Tchouaméni news has cranked up the tension ahead of the knockout phase. There is a real sense that this is the kind of game where Deschamps' midfield depth gets tested early.

World Cup Thread, Saturday 4 July