Thierry Henry says France can thrive with Mbappe

Thierry Henry believes France can produce effective football with Kylian Mbappe in the team and says the forward should play regardless of his position. For Henry, the responsibility lies with the coach to build a structure that brings the best balance from the squad rather than treating Mbappe as the problem.

Mbappe will not be available for France’s next three Nations League matches after leaving the national team camp. He was injured while scoring the winning goal against Turkey. His absence comes after Zinedine Zidane moved him back to the left wing, a change that offered France a different attacking setup.

Henry said finding the right balance is difficult with or without Mbappe. He pointed to Manchester City’s struggles after losing Rodri last season, despite Pep Guardiola being in charge, while noting that Rodri’s presence at Barcelona has helped the team concede fewer goals without reducing its scoring output. In Henry’s view, those examples underline the coach’s role in adapting the team.

The former Arsenal striker also made clear that he was not offering tactical instructions to Zidane or Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho. He said that responsibility belongs to the coaches leading France and the club side, not to him.