Ousmane Dembélé endures a failed France break

Ousmane Dembélé leaves France’s international break with his status as a leading figure under renewed scrutiny. The Paris Saint-Germain forward was given the captaincy while Kylian Mbappé was rested, creating an opportunity to take greater responsibility in attack. Instead, his performances against Belgium provided little evidence that he had seized it.

France eventually beat Belgium 4-1, but Dembélé was substituted after 60 minutes. He finished without a goal or assist and failed to put any of his attempts on target. Only one of his six dribbles succeeded, while he also lost possession 22 times and failed to complete any of six crosses. He received a rating of 2/10 in the assessment supplied.

His departure marked a clear change in France’s attacking threat. With Dembélé off the field, Michael Olise, Rayan Cherki and Désiré Doué helped transform the contest, with France scoring four times in a 14-minute spell after Belgium had led as late as the 77th minute. The contrast left the PSG player’s contribution looking even more limited.

The difficult break comes a year after Dembélé won the Ballon d’Or and while he was being tested as France’s attacking leader. Zinédine Zidane nevertheless praised his energy and ability to operate in different positions, but the captain’s displays ended the gathering with more doubts than answers.