Zidane inherits disappointing Dembélé World Cup as priority issue

Ousmane Dembélé finished the 2026 World Cup with five goals and two assists, including a hat-trick against Norway in the final group match, but his overall level remained well below what he produces at Paris Saint-Germain. The question of dropping him from the starting eleven had been raised from the start of the tournament, before Didier Deschamps maintained his confidence in him throughout.

The connection with Kylian Mbappé, which works intermittently at club level, once again failed to materialize in the French shirt. “We discovered an excellent connection between Olise and Mbappé, but with Dembélé it’s more problematic,” notes Laurent Perrin, sports editor at Le Parisien. “With the Blues, the Mbappé-Dembélé relationship has never worked either. It’s one of the issues Zidane will have to manage.”

Despite excessive technical errors throughout the tournament, Dembélé nevertheless improved his personal international statistics, which had remained very modest until now. This mixed record places the Blues number 7 at the heart of his future manager’s initial tactical considerations.

Zinédine Zidane, whose appointment could be made official by the French Football Federation as early as next week, has not yet signed his contract at this stage. The 1998 Ballon d’Or winner should nevertheless keep Dembélé in his squad, at least initially, before deciding on his integration into the Blues’ attacking system.