Since Friday evening, following the injury to Ousmane Dembélé (the 28-year-old forward) during France’s victory against Ukraine (2-0, 2026 World Cup qualifiers), Paris Saint-Germain has highlighted the lack of communication and caution from the French national team. They also mentioned other similar cases in the past. This has angered Christophe Dugarry, the 1998 World Cup winner, now a sports commentator. He criticized PSG on the RMC Sport radio station.
Dugarry: “We know that Dembélé has been injury-prone for several years.”
“I fully support the French Football Federation and Didier Deschamps. We know that Dembélé has been injury-prone for several years. This time, he got injured, it’s just bad luck. For PSG to try to convince me that Ousmane Dembélé never played for Paris when he had too much muscle fatigue, I don’t believe it for a second. The manipulation that PSG is trying to pull is scandalous; it’s disrespectful to the national team and Didier Deschamps.
Dugarry: “PSG is solely responsible for Dembélé’s workload.”
PSG is solely responsible for Dembélé’s workload. I understand PSG’s disappointment, but the national team comes first. The coach chooses the players, regardless. They already have their noses in the LFP (French League), and now they want to meddle in the FFF (French Football Federation) and decide what happens there? When I see President Nasser Al-Khelaifi standing next to Gianni Infantino, explaining to us that the Club World Cup is a good thing…”
It’s possible that PSG also bears some responsibility. He is a PSG player, who had to follow the club’s schedule and played at the start of the season. But Dugarry is exaggerating, as he often does. First of all, it should be emphasized that PSG didn’t create the Club World Cup. And we shouldn’t criticize the Parisians for winning the Champions League or reaching the final of the Club World Cup, thus showcasing French football.
It’s also worth noting that Dembélé was on the bench for the Ligue 1 match against Nantes, during the second matchday, and came on as a substitute late in the game. He also didn’t play during the group stage of the Club World Cup, as a precaution after a minor muscle issue. As Dugarry himself points out, we know that the forward is prone to injuries. He was returning from an injury, had only one training session with the team, and this all happened after an incomplete pre-season due to the congested fixture list.
The decision to bring the forward on at halftime wasn’t PSG’s, and it wasn’t a wise one. It was possible, since the player was “fit,” but there were better options. Dugarry may defend Deschamps, but it was his choice to bring him on instead of other promising players on the bench. Perhaps Paris is making too much of this, but this isn’t the first time such a situation has occurred. It’s also about defending the club’s interests, protecting the players, and ensuring that the club isn’t penalized during the season because of someone else’s decisions.
