Saint Denis: Thierry Henry’s France are firm favorites to progress after Wednesday’s men’s football draw for the 2024 Olympics as the hosts wait to see if Kylian Mbappe will be available.
“Nothing is easy,” Henry said after the draw, but his side, already favorites to win the gold medal on home soil, avoided the potential pitfalls of Morocco and Egypt not being drawn.
Les Bleus are in Group A of the 16-team tournament with New Zealand, the USA and the AFC-CAF play-off winners as they seek a second Olympic gold after their 1984 success.
“It’s never easy to win a tournament at home, I think Brazil and Spain did it (in 2016 and 1992) but it doesn’t happen often,” Henry said.
“We’re going to try to make it happen, but it’s going to be a long road.”
It is understood that Paris Saint-Germain superstar Mbappe is also keen to represent his country at the Olympics, but will likely have little time to rest after Euro 2024.
Soccer’s world governing body FIFA does not oblige clubs to release players for the Olympics, which could further complicate Mbappe’s situation.
The World Cup winner’s chances of featuring in the visitors’ squad as one of their three over-23s appear all but extinct, however, fellow 2018 World Champion Antoine Griezmann could still feature despite his recent ankle injury.
But with under-23 talents like Eduardo Camavinga, Bradley Barcola and Warren Zaire-Emery also potentially available, Henry can expect to top the group regardless.
