Didier Deschamps has left Eduardo Camavinga out of France’s 26-man World Cup squad, ending the 21-year-old Real Madrid midfielder’s chance of going to the tournament with Les Bleus. Deschamps said Camavinga was coming off a difficult season, and the decision was made after he revealed his squad.
The omission is being searched now because it was the final cut, not a debate about form. Camavinga is officially out of France’s World Cup squad, and the announcement immediately turned a season of stop-start availability into a finished case for the national team.
Deschamps did not frame the call as a rejection of talent. He said Camavinga had played little and dealt with injuries during the season, a blunt explanation for why the midfielder was not among the 26 names selected. The coach also pointed to the competition in the middle of the pitch, where Aurélien Tchouaméni and N'Golo Kanté were chosen as holding midfielders, while Adrien Rabiot, Warren Zaïre‑Emery and Youssouf Fofana were picked for interior roles. In simple terms, there were only so many places, and those five filled them.
That is what makes the omission harder to miss. Camavinga had been described as close to the final squad list, yet Deschamps still chose five other midfielders instead. The contrast is sharper because Camavinga did not start either of France’s two friendlies against Brazil and Croatia during the last international break, leaving little fresh evidence that he could force his way into the lineup at the end.
Deschamps tried to soften the blow without changing the reality. He said he could imagine Camavinga’s huge disappointment, but added that the player is still young and that tough choices had to be made across defense, midfield and attack. For Camavinga, that means watching the World Cup from home while France moves on without one of its most gifted young midfielders. The unresolved question is not whether the squad is final — it is whether a season interrupted by injuries and limited minutes can be turned around quickly enough to put him back in the center of the France picture next time.
