Thauvin is opening up about the conflict that he and Payet had during their various times as teammates in an interview for the show Zack en Roue Libre.

The Udinese forward says that when he originally arrived at OM in 2013, he had “a lot of respect for this great player.” He says initially, Payet and Mathieu Valbuena (40) were at odds with each other because, according to Thauvin, the former West Ham attacker wasn’t passing the ball.

Payet was also not passing to Thauvin, according to the 2018 World Cup winner, with tensions eventually boiling over when the man from Orléans says he was wide open on a couple of occasions in on goal but never got the proper service from Payet.

In 2015, Payet would move to West Ham United, with Thauvin joining Newcastle United, but that was not the end of their issues. Both players eventually wound up back in Marseille in 2017 with their differences apparently squashed.

“It was going really well for the first two years,” says Thauvin about the reunion with Payet, which was until the club began struggling to get results. Manager André Villas-Boas summoned the two into a meeting when the results weren’t going their way.

“For me, there is no problem,” said Thauvin, adding that Payet didn’t say anything to him.

“We continued, and sometime later there was a problem at the club with Dimitri” according to Thauvin.

Tensions continued to grow to the point where Thauvin claimed that Payet spoke up in front of everyone to call him out. Thauvin claims that Payet said, “Flo (Thauvin), if you have a problem, tell me because you are playing for yourself, you have to respect the team.”

“He stuck a knife in my back,” Thauvin continues. After that, Thauvin says they weren’t on speaking terms, though he says he was glad to hear that Payet had a problem with him because he was unaware.

In 2021, Thauvin moved to Mexico to play for Tigres alongside former Marseille striker André-Pierre Gignac (38) before moving to Serie A for his current club, Udinese, in late January 2023.

Payet would remain at OM until he and the club mutually agreed to part ways last year, with the Euro 2016 runner-up going to Brazil, where he currently features at Vasco da Gama.

The two saw each other last year during the Monaco Grand Prix, where they reconciled, to an extent. “He came himself to personally shake my hand,” recalls Thauvin, who interpreted that as Payet’s admission of having messed up.

During their time at Marseille, Thauvin and Payet played a big part in leading Les Olympiensto to the 2017-18 Europa League final.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

A 2018 World Cup winner with France, Kimpembe missed the entire 2023-24 campaign after undergoing surgery to repair his Achilles, after featuring in just 11 Ligue 1 fixtures for Les Parisiens during the 2022-23 season.

Kimpembe’s Achilles rupture came just two weeks after returning from a hamstring strain which kept him sidelined for three months.

He underwent his Achilles operation in March 2023, and then another one midway through last season. But he suffered a further setback in August of this year as he experienced muscle discomfort in his left leg.

It has been a lengthy recovery process for Kimpembe, who has worked on muscle strengthening while doing support exercises and physiotherapy.

While he didn’t participate in the entire training session, his presence is an encouraging sign for a side that have won just one of their previous three matches across all competitions.

A timetable for his return is yet to be defined, but he is on the list of players eligible to feature for PSG in the UEFA Champions League.

Over the past two years, he has struggled to stay fit, missing out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar because of an injury and being replaced by Axel Disasi.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

His trip to Stockholm controversially coincided with Les Bleus’ UEFA Nations League match against Israel, which he missed due to recovery from a thigh injury. The report from Aftonbladet, denounced by the forward as “FAKE NEWS”, in Sweden did not mention Mbappé as being a subject of the police’s investigation, unlike a report from Expressen later that evening, which stated the contrary. Speaking to the AFP, the Real Madrid forward’s entourage stated that they were unaware that he was the subject of any enquiry. Confirming the enquiry, the Swedish prosecutor did not mention Mbappé’s name.

Mbappé’s lawyer, Marie-Alix Canu Bernard, sat down with TF1 on Tuesday to defend her client in light of the accusations.“He (Mbappé) knows he has absolutely nothing to reproach himself. The accusations are totally false and irresponsible, and their propaganda is unacceptable,” said Patricia Goldman, a representative for Mbappé.

Meanwhile, Canu Bernard said, “We do not know who the complaint is against; I do not know if the complaint is targeting him.”

She goes on to say, “He had done nothing wrong,” adding that her client would cooperate with the Swedish justice system should he be directly targeted by an investigation.

According to Canu Bernard, though, Mbappé would never leave himself vulnerable to a situation like this. “He is never alone; he is never exposed to a risk-taking situation. It totally excludes that there could have been any reprehensible behaviour on his part. It is an absolute certainty.”

She added that Mbappé is calm but shocked by the media frenzy around this situation.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

Malick Fofana (19) joined Lyon in January 2024, and the teenager has thrived out wide throughout the campaign, utilising his pace and skills with both feet to terrorise opposing defenders down the left flank.

He is another success story from KAA Gent in Belgium, the same club that his teammate Gift Orban (22) and prolific Lille OSC goalscorer Jonathan David (24) previously featured with before their careers started to thrive.

Fofana has three goals and an assist in his last three matches with Les Gones across all competitions, as Lyon are on a four-match winning run, in all competitions. 

OL had won just one of their opening five domestic contests before their current run and currently find themselves eighth in the table. Fofana’s excellent form has earned him more playing time down the left wing instead of Saïd Benrahma (29).

Pierre Sage’s side has looked much more dynamic with Fofana’s presence, as his dribbling, particularly in one-on-one situations, has created plenty of scoring opportunities for OL.

He’s not just a speed demon; he’s shown himself to be a solid provider who is capable of making pinpoint crosses with either foot.

At an early age, he’s also shown that he can come through in clutch situations, scoring a winner in the dying stages of their win over Toulouse FC (2-1).

The Belgian netted a brace in Lyon’s 4-1 victory in the UEFA Europe League versus Rangers. Following that match, Fofana spoke about the challenge his coach had put on him.

“For me personally, the coach told me that to be a starter, I had to prove I can help the team,’” says Fofana. Sage says he’s earned his place in the team so far this season.

“He’s a player who’s at the very high level in his mentality, but he will have to string together these sorts of matches, then he will have a very, very good future,” said the OL manager.

After nine appearances across all competitions this season, Fofana has three goals, one fewer than his highest-ever total in a single campaign.

Early into his football career, Fofana is drawing comparisons to another Belgian winger and former Ligue 1 player, Yannick Carrasco (31), who made over 100 appearances for AS Monaco’s first and second teams.

Fofana made his first appearance with the national team at the most recent UEFA Nations League window, playing the final three minutes plus stoppage time against Italy in place of Jérémy Doku.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

Randal Kolo Muani (25) has consistently produced with the national team, notching a brace in a 2-1 triumph for France over Belgium in the UEFA Nations League.

The 2022 World Cup runner-up has nine goal involvements in his last eight starts with Les Bleus, while he’s got more goals than anyone for Didier Deschamps’ side this year (six).

In their victory on Monday, Kolo Muani became the first French player to net a brace against the Red Devils since Jean-Pierre Papin in the early 1990s.

Indeed, Kolo Muani has been productive for the national team, but the same cannot be said about his form at club level for Paris Saint-Germain.

The Bondy-born player has had anything but a stellar career with Les Parisiens, joining them from Eintracht Frankfurt in a €90m deal in September 2023.

With only 11 goals in 49 competitive matches played for the reigning Ligue 1 champions, it would be fair to see he’s not lived up to expectations. In Paris, Kolo Muani has looked low on confidence and not nearly the same cold-blooded attacker we have seen in France.

National team manager Didier Deschamps said that there may be a reason for the performance differences for Kolo Muani. “With us, he has a different framework, where he knows what I expect from him,” Deschamps said before the start of Euro 2024.

The rangy physique and dribbling of Kolo Muani have been compared to Thierry Henry, but he’s still got a long way to go, to equal the consistency that the 1998 World Cup winner showed for club and country during the prime of his career.

Luis Enrique has a reputation for having players on a short leash after a poor performance, and Kolo Muani’s minutes with the club have deteriorated, with just two Ligue 1 start this season.

His current salary suggests that PSG believed him to be an elite striker in world football; however, it’s not paid off for the club as of yet.

For a player who was relatively unknown until the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup, his expectations with PSG may be too high.

He scored 15 goals in 32 Bundesliga fixtures during the 2022-23 campaign, his best as a professional, however, his numbers before that do not suggest he’s a consistent prolific scorer that warrants the kind of salary he’s receiving.

Before his time at Frankfurt, Kolo Muani had just one double-digit season of domestic goals, netting 12 for FC Nantes in 2021-22.

Without Kylian Mbappé (25) in Paris, there’s been a lot on the plate of the PSG strikers, and the club chose not to make big signings to fill the void left when the French captain moved to Real Madrid.

There’s always pressure when you feature for France, but it feels like he doesn’t have as big of a weight on his shoulders with Les Bleus compared to PSG.

Kolo Muani has admitted to not being up to par at times with PSG, saying at the end of the previous campaign that he wished he could quickly forget his first season with the club.

The case of Randal Kolo Muani has never been an open and shut case, nor will it be any time soon.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

The club’s medical team say that Valentín Carboni (19) suffered a cruciate ligament sprain on his left knee and will undergo surgery as soon as possible. Carboni will miss the remainder of the season for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.

Carboni came to Marseille on loan from reigning Serie A champions Inter Milan and had only featured in four Ligue 1 fixtures this season before suffering a serious injury.

In their 1-0 defeat versus RC Strasbourg Alsace, Carboni was replaced by Luis Henrique (22) with fewer than 20 minutes remaining, and he has not seen any game time since.

While Carboni is on a season-long loan deal, Marseille have an option to buy him at the end of that spell with a counter-option in favour of Internazionale.

Marseille’s next encounter takes place away from home on October 20 against Montpellier HSC at Stade de la Mosson.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

Éric Abidal spent three seasons at the club from 2004 to 2007, helping them win three Ligue 1 titles before making a move to Barcelona.

Lyon wanted him to be their new sporting director, an offer which, according to the 2006 World Cup runner-up, was not appealing enough.

Abidal told Free Foot, “I was contacted by OL. I had a discussion with them. It is a club with enormous potential. Now I am not sure that it is currently structured in the way it would be necessary to have stability.”

He adds that he believes there is a gap between the club’s structure and the football part, which factored into his decision to decline the offer.

According to the two-time UEFA Champions League winner at Barcelona, there is no stability at Lyon right now regarding sporting decisions, something he says is a mistake.

After announcing his retirement as a player, Abidal served as the director of football at Barcelona from June 2018 until his sacking in August 2020 after his side were routed 8-2 by Bayern Munich in a Champions League quarter-final clash.

Abidal began his footballing career at Lyon Duchère before moving to the Principality at AS Monaco between 2000 and 2002.

On three occasions, he was named to the Ligue 1 Team of the Year while at Lyon, and he was also on the 2007 UEFA Team of the Year, with his side topping a Champions League group that featured Real Madrid in 2006-07.

Last month, Lyon parted ways with David Friio reportedly because of his inability to move players on high wages out of the club.

That left him at odds with owner John Textor, as their relationship had reportedly been on shaky ground for months. During the summer transfer window, the club made more than 20 signings and said goodbye to over a dozen players.

At the same time, they failed to get some high-profile players off their books, including Anthony Lopes (34), who is still at the club but as fourth-choice goalkeeper.

Earlier this week L’Équipe reported that former Dijon defender Daniel Congré will become the club’s new Sporting Coordinator. He won’t be involved in recruiting or any decision-making but instead mental preparation.

L’Équipe understands that Les Gones do not plan to replace Friio, who was axed as the Lyon sporting director last month.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

In a recent column for L’Équipe, Lizarazu said this group can no longer lean on the leadership of Hugo Lloris, Raphaël Varane or Antoine Griezmann, all of whom have retired from international football, and it’s time to see who will emerge as the leader of this group.

Didier Deschamps’ squad seems to be going through a transitional period. Naming Kylian Mbappé ascaptain was a major point of contention after the 2022 World Cup, and with the Real Madrid striker not in the team for these UEFA Nations League fixtures, it’s caused many to wonder who can put this team on their shoulders.

In terms of the armband, that honour will go to Mbappé’s club teammate Aurélien Tchouaméni, against Israel on Thursday at least.

According to Lizarazu, the team needs players in every area of the pitch to lead, but who those individuals may be is still a mystery.

The former UEFA Champions League winner at Bayern Munich adds that given the trying season that Mbappé went through both physically and mentally for club and country, giving him a break may not be such a bad thing.

Over a dozen players chosen for Les Bleus for this international window are 25 years old or under, with Loïc Badé being the only uncapped player.

France will face Israel on Thursday before taking on Belgium on matchday four of their UEFA Nations League campaign on October 14.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

Two seasons at PSG was all the 2022 World Cup winner could handle, and though he failed to take them to a UEFA Champions League title, he won two Ligue 1 crowns and the Trophée des Champions during his brief spell.

The Argentine captain is currently at Inter Miami CF in Major League Soccer (MLS), who recently won the Supporters’ Shield for the best record in the regular season.

Brecht Dejaegere (33) recently spoke to a Belgian news outlet, RTBF, about a recent conversation he had with Messi following a match between Miami and his former club Charlotte FC.

After the match ended, Dejaegere asked Messi about his time in Paris.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner summed it up in one word: ‘la mierda’, which in English translates to ‘s**t’.

Dejargere and Messi had faced each other before when the Belgian was playing his club football at Toulouse FC, and Messi was at PSG.

According to Dejaegere, who now features Kortrijk in the Belgian Pro League, Messi was fed up with the negativity around Les Parisiens during his two seasons at the club, where he was constantly whistled and booed.

Despite the club boasting an array of talented attacking players, including Messi’s former Barça teammate Neymar and current Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé, PSG failed to go beyond the last 16 of the Champions League in their two seasons with Messi.

When Messi joined Inter Miami, he admitted that he did not want to leave the Catalonian club, calling the move to Paris an overnight decision.

 “It was difficult in Paris, but it is quite the opposite of what is going on with me here and now,” said Messi.

While he failed to deliver on the club’s ultimate goal to win the Champions League, Messi still put together two strong campaigns for Les Parisiens. He scored 21 goals and 20 assists in his final season at PSG before coming to MLS on a free transfer in July 2023.

Before coming to PSG, Messi won four Champions League titles at Barça and was the tournament’s top scorer on six occasions.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre

The Paris Saint-Germain manager saw his side get dominated by Arsenal in their UEFA Champions League fixture late last month, and they are coming off a subpar outing last weekend, playing out a 1-1 draw domestically with OGC Nice.

According to one of his former players, though, the former Spanish international’s managerial approach wasn’t all that appealing when he was in charge of La Roja either.

Aymeric Laporte (30) has been a regular for Spain since becoming an international for the senior squad, playing under Luis Enrique at the 2022 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2020.

The Al Nassr centre-back was a guest on a recent episode of Rothen S’enflamme, where he was asked about his former coach’s tactics while in charge of Spain.

Laporte said, “With Luis Enrique, it was a fixed tactical pattern; we didn’t have too much freedom.”

The man born in Agen, France, says since current Spain boss Luis de la Fuente took charge, the team has played with a lot more lucidity.

‘”Now we have a little more flexibility; we can make our own decisions, choose what to do and when,” Laporte said.

As an example, he said that Luis Enrique did not allow them to clear the ball out from the defensive zone when a match got into the 90th minute but instead they had to play the ball out from the back.

Before officially becoming a Spanish international, Laporte had been called up by Didier Deschamps for two of France’s 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

Eventually, Laporte wound up switching nationalities and featuring as a starting centre-back with the Spanish team since Euro 2020.

Under Luis Enrique, Spain lost the UEFA Nations League final versus France in 2021 (2-1) before winning the title during the 2022-23 campaign under de la Fuente.

GFFN | Joel Lefevre