France Should Test Samuel Umtiti in Friendly vs. Scotland

Hosts France got their European Championship final preparations off to a winning start on Monday with a narrow 3-2 victory over Cameroon at Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes. Although a triumph, Les Bleus and coach Didier Deschamps were left with more questions than answers after the match.

The French took the lead through Paris Saint-Germain’s Blaise Matuidi after 20 minutes, only for FC Porto’s Vincent Aboubakar to equalise for the Africans two minutes later thanks to some sloppy defending.

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Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud re-established the hosts’ lead just before half-time, and they led all the way up until the 88th minute, when Schalke 04’s Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was allowed to level for Hugo Broos’ men for a second time after more naive defending.

West Ham United’s Dimitri Payet curled in a sensational late winner with a free-kick, but his stunning strike did little more than paper over the cracks exposed at the back.

Speaking with journalists after the final whistle, Deschamps admitted that his side had been poor defensively but put that down to a lack of familiarity between Sevilla’s Adil Rami and Arsenal’s Laurent Koscielny:

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Cameroon played in a new system with power and pace in midfield and up front. There are things we can improve defensively but this was our first match after a long period without competition for certain players. It was the first match that Adil Rami and Laurent Koscielny played together in a long time and we were up against a quality side. I wasn't expecting a perfect performance. In terms of positives, we scored three goals and had a lot of chances. Technically we can improve but the frame of mind is there. To win a competition, your defence is very important but the main thing is to score one more goal than your opponents. I don't want to stop the team from pushing up the pitch, even if that exposes the defence from time to time.

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Deschamps was not wrong in his assertion that Rami and Koscielny looked every bit the unfamiliar central defensive pairing. To remedy that, the partnership will need extra matches.

However, France do not have multiple games to get ready before their Group A opener against Romania at Stade de France, they only have one final preparatory fixture.

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Scotland are the visitors to Stade Saint-Symphorien in Longeville-les-Metz, France, on Saturday, and Deschamps must give Manchester City’s Eliaquim Mangala an opportunity to impress, as he could also form a starting central defensive pairing with Koscielny.

However, the player whom the French tactician most needs to test against the Scots this weekend is Olympique Lyonnais’ Samuel Umtiti.

Initially a reserve and overlooked when Deschamps replaced Real Madrid’s injured Raphael Varane with Rami, the Cameroon-born 22-year-old eventually got his place in the 23-man squad when Barcelona’s versatile defender Jeremy Mathieu withdrew with a calf problem.

Now finally a part of Deschamps’ group, Umtiti deserves a chance to impress the 1998 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2000-winning former captain before the tournament gets under way.

The ex-France under-21 international is highly rated in Ligue 1, and former Lyon player Eric Abidal recently raved about Les Gones’ No. 23 in an interview with the seven-time French champions’ official website.

As reported by ESPN FC’s Mark Rodden, Abidal said: "He is world-class. That's why he's a starter at a club like OL. He has a lot of qualities. I really wish him the very best for the years to come. He's such an important player that it would be really tough for OL to let him go."

Umtiti is expected to attract plenty of interest over the summer, and a revelatory European Championship on home soil could lead to a bidding war featuring some of the continent’s biggest clubs.

However, in order for that to happen, the Lyon man must first make his international debut. Considering that he was born in Yaounde and is yet to get a taste of senior international football, it was slightly surprising that he did not feature against his birth nation Cameroon in Nantes on Monday.

Taking into account the fact that Varane and Mathieu’s withdrawals—as well as Deschamps' decision not to call up Liverpool’s Mamadou Sakho despite his provisional drugs ban coming to end—came after the two most recent friendly matches, Deschamps was likely establishing a new first choice centre-back pairing.

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As one of just two squad members with no caps to their name, the Scotland game would be the right moment for the 47-year-old coach to hand Umtiti his senior international debut.

Entering the tournament with an outfield player who does not have a single cap to their name would be an unnecessary risk.

Besides, considering how poor Rami was against Cameroon and how Mangala has failed to truly impress since becoming a full France international, a strong performance from Umtiti could actually give Deschamps a pleasant headache in that he would have a potential new starting option.

That last scenario is unlikely to materialise, but to not even hand the Lyon youngster his first taste of international football before entering the tournament would be foolish of Deschamps.

Resting Koscielny—already a nailed-on starter—would be a wise move anyway, and it should be up to Rami, Mangala and Umtiti to impress against Scotland.

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A strong, athletic and surprisingly technical left-footed central defender, Umtiti also offers Deschamps an emergency option at left-back if Juventus’ Patrice Evra and PSG-owned, AS Roma loanee Lucas Digne were unexpectedly unavailable.

However, based on his extremely consistent displays at the heart of the Lyon defence in the Ligue 1 season just finished, his place in this France team has to be in the middle of the back four.

His inclusion in Deschamps’ squad—when considering his ability—is not really a surprise; the biggest shock is that it has taken so long for Deschamps to finally recognise his immense progress in recent campaigns. Umtiti should have been called up earlier than this. 

Now that he is in the group, though, he must be given a chance to adapt to senior international football by making his debut.

Scotland in this weekend’s friendly in Metz is the perfect place for that to happen.