With which goalkeepers will Didier Deschamps cross the Atlantic this summer? Clever is the one who would know how to predict it at this very moment. Behind Mike Maignan, untouchable at the post, the debate remains entirely open. Promoted to number 2 in recent months in the selection, Lucas Chevalier has seen his status weaken at PSG, where he is now Safonov’s official understudy if we rely on the last matches.
Brice Samba, relegated as number 3, is not having the season of his life despite his great match against PSG (3-1), last weekend in Ligue 1. The former Lens goalkeeper had been downgraded by Habib Beye just before his departure, and will have to have a strong second half of the season to hope to be part of the trip. Same story for Alphonse Areola, now a substitute at West Ham and no longer called up since October 2024.
The two shared a close fate this week
At the same time, two other profiles emerged in the eyes of Didier Deschamps and his staff: Jean Butez and Robin Risser. This week, the French team’s goalkeeping coach, Franck Raviot, came to supervise the two. He first went to Italy on Tuesday to attend the clash between AC Milan and Como (1-1). A meeting during which Mike Maignan and Jean Butez did not particularly shine. The former Antwerp goalkeeper was guilty of a much too daring exit thirty meters from his goal, giving Rafael Leão plenty of time to lob him and equalize.
Franck Raviot will certainly see the images of his match today against Juve, a little more reassuring (Como won 2-0), but in the meantime, the former goalkeeper who played for INF Clairefontaine concluded his tour with a trip to Lens this Saturday, in order to supervise Robin Risser against Monaco. Perhaps not a good afternoon for the international hopeful (4 caps). Decisive in the first period against Balogun, he was then a bit of a symbol of the sinking of his team, plunged into a complete black hole after the break (defeat, 3-2). He was not completely clear on Balogun’s first goal from a tight angle and the guilt was also revealed on his face. Difficult to blame in the second, he was on the other hand in the photograph of the last against Fati, after having been left abandoned by his defense. Of course, these two poor performances are not a replay of the seasons of Butez and Risser, but they will perhaps offer signals to Deschamps and his staff about their attitude under pressure.
