Franck Ribéry has been forced to withdraw from the World Cup for France due to a persistent back injury.
“This morning before the collective training session … he had to stop, the pain was too strong,” Didier Deschamps told a news conference. “We have made checks in the beginning of the afternoon, checks that confirmed the situation has aggravated and he is not capable of training for a few weeks, let alone play a game. We know what Franck is capable of. With Franck Ribery at 100%, we are better. But we have to be ambitious and we will continue to be.”
Clément Grenier will also miss the tournament with Montpellier’s Rémy Cabella and Southampton’s Morgan Schneiderlin will replace the duo.