2024 was another year of departures for France. After Hugo Lloris and Raphaël Varane retired from international football following the FIFA World Cup 2022™, the last 12 months have seen Olivier Giroud and then Antoine Griezmann also call it a day.
There aren’t many heroes remaining around Kylian Mbape, who won the 2018 title and reached the 2022 final. The rebuilding process that began in 2024 is set to continue in 2025. The fresh wind personified by the likes of Warren Zaire-Emery, Michael Olise, Manu Kone and Bradley Barcola could blow even stronger as Les Bleus head into qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 26™ taking place in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
Here, FIFA shines a spotlight on several young stars that are catching the eye both in their homelands and beyond, shortlisting five young footballers who stand a real chance of securing their first cap for France in 2025.
Maghnes Akliouche (Midfielder, AS Monaco)
Could 2025 be Maghnes Akliouche’s breakthrough year?
The classy AS Monaco midfielder has been highly regarded for several years now as a technically gifted player, adept at both creating and finishing chances. “He has his photo at the training ground,” said U-20 international Saimon Bouabre, who also plays for Monaco. “They put the spotlight on young talent that has recently broken through with quotes to show us what it’s like to be at the top level.”
Akliouche is already setting an example for the younger generation, having made significant progress in 2024. The left-footed winger won a silver medal at the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 and made his debut in the UEFA Champions League with ASM. He is now a regular starter for the French club and an increasingly decisive influence on AS Monaco’s playing style.
Having made over 60 appearances in Ligue 1, this gifted playmaker has the potential to be a real asset to Didier Deschamps. If he were to be called up to Les Bleus, the player who turns 23 in February would be the first AS Monaco graduate to become a French international since a certain… Kylian Mbappe.
Ayyoub Bouaddi (Midfielder, Lille OSC)
On an October evening in 2023, Paulo Fonseca shocked the football world by starting 16-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi on the remote Kl Klaksvik pitch in the Faroe Islands. Lille could only muster a draw (0-0) in this UEFA Conference League group stage match, but a remarkable sequence of events could have been sparked off that evening.
A year later, the youngster from Senlis has made a name for himself with Les Dogues, racking up 21 appearances in Ligue 1 and five in the UEFA Champions League. This included a magisterial performance against Real Madrid which saw Lille win 1-0 thanks to his strength, vision and unrivalled technical ability.
Fonseca was quickly won over by the teenager’s early talent. Likewise, his successor on the Lille bench, Bruno Genesio, took a keen interest in a refreshingly different youngster who was well ahead of his time on the pitch. The young man who celebrated his 17th birthday last October graduated from high school at the age of 16, with honours. He is currently studying for a degree in mathematics alongside his professional career. “Maths helps me get to grips with the game more quickly,” he told the French newspaper Le Parisien last month.
Rewarded with his first cap for Les Espoirs (France U-21) on November 15 against Italy (2-2), the dual national Bouaddi could also don the Moroccan colours, as the President of the Royal Moroccan Football Association (FRMF), Fouzi Lekjaa, recently made clear. The former AFC Creil player could be faced with a tough decision in the coming months.
Rayan Cherki (Midfielder, Olympique Lyonnais)
Cherki, like Bouaddi, has more than just the French national team to choose from. The Olympique Lyonnais talisman is spoilt for choice and could represent Italy, Algeria or France on the international stage.
While we have yet to discover which shirt the talented attacking midfielder will wear, his main international achievements to date have all been with a French one on his back, having scored 12 and set up seven in 22 appearances for France’s Les Espoirs side. Despite his back-up role, Cherki picked up a silver medal with France’s U-23 team at Paris 2024, coached by the legendary Thierry Henry.
Cherki’s chances of making his first appearance for Les Bleus depend not only on his choice of national team, but more importantly on his performances at club level. Despite a slow start to the season for Lyon, the 21-year-old managed to break into this list of five players because his recent performances have lived up to his immense potential.
“I think he’s being noticed and taken seriously nowadays,” explained OL coach Pierre Sage recently. “His Olympic experience wasn’t particularly positive, but these days he’s got other tricks up his sleeve. If he gets the nod, he’ll deserve it.”
As a gifted playmaker and artist with the ball at his feet, Cherki can turn a match on its head with a flash of brilliance, and Didier Deschamps is bound to keep a close eye on him. French media have been buzzing with hopes that he might be included in the first 2025 shortlist.
Desire Doue (Striker, Paris Saint-Germain)
December 2024 triggered Doue’s breakthrough at Paris Saint-Germain as he scored his first two goals. However, the gifted 19-year-old has long been considered a French international in the making. Since bursting onto the scene with the reserve team of his boyhood club, Stade Rennais, both in the league and in the Coupe Gambardella, the youngster has displayed impressive qualities on and off the ball and is widely regarded as one of the best emerging talents in world football.
“Whether he’s playing at Le Rheu (Brittany) with his friends, at Roazhon Park or at other stadiums, he always plays the same way. He just loves football,” his former coach at Rennes, Mathieu Le Scornet, told the French regional newspaper Le Télégramme before the Olympic Games.
Since his Olympic silver medal, the Angers-born youngstermade a headline-grabbing move by joining PSG for €50 million, which speaks volumes about his value and immense potential. As a versatile attacking force who can play in the middle or on either flank, Doue has all the ingredients to feature for the French national team in 2025.
Enzo Millot (Midfielder, VfB Stuttgart)
Having also come through the Monaco youth academy, Millot opted for Stuttgart in 2021 at the age of 19. The German club, then still in the midst of restructuring following two relegations in 2016 and 2019, has helped him continue to develop under the radar in a highly competitive Bundesliga.
At the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024, the attacking midfielder revealed to French fans how well he has adapted to the top level. “I left AS Monaco because I wanted to get more playing time, and I think it’s fair to say that the gamble has paid off,” Millot told French sports magazine So Foot back in March.
Today, with his club back in European football after securing a remarkable second-place finish in the Bundesliga, behind Leverkusen, in 2023/24, Millot has passed some tough tests with flying colours. So far, the Luce-born midfielder has notched up two goals and three assists in six matches in his first-ever UEFA Champions League campaign.
Even bigger moves could be in store as some reports are already linking the 22-year-old with a move to some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Many already picture him with Les Bleus once qualification for the FIFA World Cup 26™ in Europe gets underway in the coming months.
Other possible candidates include: Guillaume Restes (Goalkeeper, Toulouse FC), Malo Gusto (Defender, Chelsea), Quentin Merlin (Defender, Olympique de Marseille), Leny Yoro (Defender, Manchester United), Soungoutou Magassa (Midfielder, AS Monaco), Mathys Tel (Striker, Bayern Munich)
