Olise is the chosen one
He is not only brilliant on the ball. The Frenchman is also the outfield player who runs the most in Deschamps’ squad. Brutal output.
Michael Olise is the complete player. A footballer who sees the move before it happens, a magician with the ball who delights everyone watching, the kind of player people gladly pay to see. Beyond that, he is a relentless runner who leaves France purring every match. He is everywhere on the pitch, much to the delight of Didier Deschamps. Untouchable. Unstoppable.
The Bayern man produced a masterclass against Sweden. The conductor of Les Bleus’ tempo, he finished with two assists and struck the post with an effort that would have been his first goal of the World Cup. “He played exactly how he wanted,” said Graham Potter, the Scandinavian coach, after a match in which Olise rivalled Kylian Mbappé for the MVP award.
He has already played 308 minutes in the tournament, enough not only to make him the World Cup’s leading assist provider with five, but also France’s hardest-working player. He has covered 40.9 kilometres so far, the most of any French player in the competition. Against Sweden, he covered 10.7 kilometres, the greatest distance of any outfield player, ahead of Adrien Rabiot and Aurélien Tchouaméni, despite being substituted five minutes from full time.
That is because Olise sacrifices himself for the team. He is the first to defend and to lead the press when France lose possession. According to SofaScore, he averages 5.5 ball recoveries per game, has won 100% of his aerial duels, makes 0.8 recoveries in the final third per match and wins 58% of his total duels. Alongside Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé, he is one of only a handful of players to have started every match, and with good reason.
“He is an exceptional player. You can see that in every match. He currently has the most assists at the World Cup, which is truly remarkable. He is an absolute top-class player who gives us so much. All the players get on extremely well with him. He may seem a bit quieter and more reserved with the media, but with us it’s different. We share plenty of laughs with him. I hope he continues to perform at this level and keeps helping us as a team,” said Désiré Doué before the match.
It comes as no surprise. The attacking midfielder has made more off-the-ball runs to offer a through-ball option than any other player in the tournament, with 111. He combines outstanding vision, close control and exquisite technique to spot the perfect pass and unlock defences. When France persuaded him to switch allegiance from England, they did not just gain a prodigy. They gained the ultimate team player.
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