France vs England: Hugo Lloris backed by Didier Deschamps and Raphael Varane after Sweden gaffe
Lloris' stoppage-time error against Sweden has dented France's qualification hopes
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Your support makes all the difference.Hugo Lloris has the full support of Didier Deschamps and will start in goal for France against England, despite his costly error in Saturday’s World Cup qualifier in Sweden.
The Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper was caught out in the final minute of stoppage time after straying far off his line and playing a poor clearance straight to Ola Toivonen.
Having been gifted the ball, the Swedish striker guided a first-time shot from 50 yards out into the unguarded net, winning the game 2-1 for the hosts.
Deschamps, however, has no intention of dropping Lloris for the friendly with Gareth Southgate’s England on Tuesday, saying on the eve of the game: “He will play, definitely. Lloris will captain.
“I discussed it with him and included that in my thinking. We shared the same opinion, that's clear. We want him to go back on the pitch.”
Lloris also received support from Raphael Varane, the Real Madrid defender, who denied that his team-mate needed time out of the spotlight following his costly gaffe.
“I personally told him what I thought about him and that that this didn't change anything,” Varane said. “We all make mistakes. He will continue saving us in other games and we don't have to cry over spilt milk.”
That defeat left France, one of the favourites for next year’s World Cup in Russia, trailing Sweden on goal difference at the top of their qualification group.
Deschamps is eager for his talented side to put the poor result in Stockholm behind them and is expected to field one of his most exciting prospects, Kylian Mbappe, in Tuesday’s friendly at the Stade de France.
Mbappe has been linked with several members of European football’s club elite after his impressive performances for Monaco in this season’s Champions League, with Real Madrid favourites to sign the forward.
Deschamps will watch Mbappe’s movement this summer with interest and, despite concerns that the 18-year-old may not be an automatic starter in Madrid, the France head coach is not necessarily worried that a move to the Bernabeu will affect the 18-year-old’s development.
“It's obviously better them to play games as much as possible but look at [Olivier] Giroud at Arsenal, he didn't play a lot but every time he did he was very, very efficient,” he said.
“When he came to France he was quite fresh, maybe fresher than others. Game time on the pitch is not a precise or exact science. What is more important is they need to be efficient on the pitch.”
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