Worries for France as more players miss training due to virus

DOHA, Dec. 17: France's preparations for Sunday's World Cup final have been further affected by the outbreak of a virus which saw three players sidelined for their semifinal win against Morocco on Wednesday night.

Kingsley Coman, Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot all missed the semifinal and it was confirmed on Friday that Coman, along with central defenders Ibrahima Konate and Raphael Varane trained away from the rest of the France squad due to the virus.

Meanwhile midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni and left-back Theo Hernandez also trained indoors because of respective hip and knee problems.

Speaking to the press on Friday, forward Randal Kolo Muani admitted the virus was spreading through the French camp, before being interrupted by a press officer, who joked "Randal is not a doctor."

Ousmane Dembele was more discreet saying: "We're not scared of that virus. Dayot and Adrien had a headache, a bit of a stomach ache. I made them a ginger and honey tea, and then they felt better. I hope everyone will be ready for the final."

If Varane and Konate were unfit, it would be a severe blow to France, with Varane who missed the opening match with a hamstring issue having an excellent tournament and Konate performing well when he replaced Upamecano on Wednesday.

The French squad have apparently introduced strict social distancing and hygiene measures to try and prevent any further cases.

Deschamps' preparation for the World Cup was affected before he named his squad, by long-term injuries to N'Golo Kante, Christopher Nkunku and Paul Pogba, while Karim Benzema had to return to Madrid after tearing a muscle in his left leg in training.