Belgian defender Thomas Meunier caused debate recently after saying that France has the footballing talent to put out three teams capable of winning the World Cup.Could Les Bleus, who are co-favourites with Spain in this summer’s World Cup, really lift the title with their second- or third-string team? Maybe not, but their talent is certainly Mariana Trench-deep.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listConsider this: According to transfermarkt.com, a lineup of French players that didn’t make the 26-man cut would rank in value among the top five teams – ahead of Portugal, Brazil, the Netherlands and reigning champions Argentina.Lucas Chevalier 30 million euros ($35m); Pierre Kalulu 32 million, Jeremy Jacquet 55 million, Leny Yoro 50 million, Adrien Truffert 25 million; Boubacar Kamara 40 million, Eduardo Camavinga 50 million; Dilani Bakwa 28 million, Senny Mayulu 40 million or Khephren Thuram 40 million, Mousa Diaby 28 million; Junior Kroupi 40 million. = 418 million [38 million average]So, how did Les Bleus get to this point?It started with frustration after French teams consistently fell short on the biggest stage from the 1930s to the 1970s. The solution, national team manager Georges Boulogne said in the early 1970s, would be for the French Football Federation to create training academies known as Centres de Formation.“France had not won any trophies, and it was decided they needed to create a new structure,” INF (Institut National du Football) Clairefontaine administrator Franck Bentolila told Al Jazeera.The …
