Mike Maignan and Adrien Rabiot played for France in the friendly against Brazil in the United States, and were on the winning side.
Milan’s 13 internationals will rack up over 100,000km of travel during the international break, at least as per the estimates from La Gazzetta dello Sport. Massimiliano Allegri will not be able to rest easy as a result, amid the risk of fatigue and even injury before the huge Easter Monday game in Napoli.
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Mike and Adrien taste victory
Two of the key players in the squad that have jetted off halfway across the world are Rabiot and Maignan, and not even for competitive games. France won their ‘luxury’ friendly in Boston 2-1 thanks to goals from Kylian Mbappé and Hugo Ekitike last night, with Bremer’s late goal a consolation.
Both the goalkeeper and the midfielder remained on the pitch for the entire match. Maignan did well with two key saves, particularly one in the second half against Luiz Henrique. Les Bleus’ next match is Sunday evening at 21:00 CET against Colombia.
L’Equipe awarded Maignan a 7 in their player ratings, equivalent to an 8 in the French rating system: “What a precious midfielder! There’s his technique, his runs, his pressing, his defensive returns, but also his way of managing the tempo of the play, especially when Les Bleus were reduced to ten men. Not everything was perfect, but the AC Milan player demonstrated his importance once again.”
Maignan got a 5, which is effectively a 6: “Put in danger by a shot from Martinelli (27th), he had to remain alert to an attempt on target from Luiz Henrique (51st). Author of a dubious aerial exit (41st), he could do nothing about Bremer’s goal (78th). As for his footwork, the former Lille goalkeeper took risks that paid off.”
