France face England in a crucial 2026 World Cup match in search of third place, where Dayot Upamecano will begin the match on the bench. France face England in the third-place match of the 2026 World Cup at Miami Stadium, and Dayot Upamecano has been left out of the starting team for this game, due to a decision from coach Didier Deschamps.
For this game, Deschamps opted to Maxence Lacroix and Ibrahima Konate form the center-back pairing, with Malo Gusto and Theo Hernandez deployed at fullback.
With the tournament’s biggest prize already out of reach after the semifinal loss to Spain, Deschamps has used the match to give minutes to players who haven’t featured as heavily, rotating his backline entirely.
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