Didier Deschamps reveals reason behind PSG man Lucas Chevalier’s absence from France’s World Cup squad
Didier Deschamps drops the reason behind his decision to snub PSG goalie Lucas Chevalier from France's 26-man squad.
France National Team head coach Didier Deschamps explains PSG goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier’s absence from the 2026 World Cup squad.
Didier Deschamps has defended his decision to snub PSG goalie Lucas Chevalier from France’s 26-man squad, telling L’Équipe that the omission was down to strictly “sporting” reasons.
PSG led the way with five selections from their team to France’s squad for the World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America. The likes of Lucas Hernandez, Warren Zaïre-Emery, Bradley Barcola, Désiré Doué, and Ousmane Dembélé are called up by Deschamps. While a sixth player in Chevalier could have been named, the final list confirmed his removal.
The French coach said, “If he hadn’t been injured, he probably would have played. Probably, I’m not putting myself in Luis Enrique’s shoes. But would it have changed anything? The criterion, as I’ve said, is a sporting one. I hoped he would get some playing time, but unfortunately, his injury didn’t help him, the situation didn’t improve, and he didn’t get the minimum amount of playing time he needed.”
The former Lille man was still on the March list despite not playing for PSG since January. However, there was a possibility of an addition to the Les Bleus team in the final list.
Chevalier has been relegated to a third-choice goalkeeper for PSG in recent weeks, as Matvei Safonov has become a regular name on the starting eleven, while youngster Renato Marin has already started two matches.
France will take Mike Maignan, Robin Risser, and Brice Samba as members of the goalkeeping department to the World Cup.
