France manager Didier Deschamps has picked out Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic as Australia’s main threat as the two countries prepare to meet at the World Cup later this month.
The French are regarded as one of the tournament favourites, boasting the likes of Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann in their star-studded squad.
They’ll meet in the opening fixture of Group C in Kazan this Saturday, with Deschamps all too aware of how important a strong start to his side’s campaign will be, given he lifted the Jules Rimet trophy as a player back in 1998.
And in order to safely collect all three points, the ex-Juventus and Chelsea midfielder acknowledges the threat posed by Celtic’s play-maker.
Speaking via the Sun, Deschamps said: “Australia used to be a defensive side, but they have changed that and now have an attacking threat.
“I am concerned about their strength going forward – in particular Tom Rogic.
“They also have Andrew Nabbout, who is an exciting player.
“They are well organised and can be an aggressive team.
“We have completed our homework on them. It’s a very difficult game against a team who will work very hard indeed.
“I have told our players to be careful about the attacking threat Australia undoubtedly pose.”
Rogic committed his future to the Parkhead club by signing a new five-year contract with Celtic last month, and his performances over the past two seasons have seen him cement his place amongst the club’s automatic starters under Brendan Rodgers.
But could a strong World Cup display still tempt big-money offers from abroad? And will he shoot-down France this weekend?
RSS