Why isn’t Aurelien Tchouameni starting for France against Morocco at the 2026 World Cup?

France faces Morocco on Thursday, July 10th, at Boston Stadium in the 2026 World Cup quarterfinals, with a place in the final four on the line. One of the main talking points ahead of kickoff is why Aurelien Tchouameni will not be starting for Les Bleus.

Tchouameni has been left out of the starting XI due to a tactical decision by head coach Didier Deschamps. With Morocco‘s defensive block presenting a specific challenge, Deschamps has opted for a more technical and creative midfield profile, dropping the Real Madrid midfielder in favor of a different approach.

Tchouameni had also been dealing with a minor injury sustained during the tournament, which kept him out of the Round of 16 match against Paraguay entirely, with the midfielder watching from the bench without logging a single minute.

At Wednesday’s press conference, Deschamps offered a cautiously optimistic update on his condition while hinting at a possible return: “Aurelien Tchouaméni is doing better, we’ll see. I can’t say more than that. He might participate in the training session today.“

The coach ultimately decided to deploy Manu Kone in his place, who’ll partner Adrien Rabiot in France’s double pivot. The AS Roma midfielder featured in both the group stage win over Iraq and the Round of 16 victory over Paraguay, and with Deschamps sticking to a similar tactical setup, Koné gets the nod once again for this quarterfinal.

A difficult World Cup for Tchouaméni

At just 25 years old, Tchouameni had established himself as a cornerstone of Deschamps’ setup, starting every match at the 2022 World Cup. But injuries have complicated his journey in the years since, and the 2026 tournament has been no different.

A hamstring injury sidelined him during the November international break, and from that point France played nine matches, four friendlies and five at the World Cup, with Tchouameni appearing in six of them. He went the full 90 minutes against Senegal, Norway, and Sweden, but a recurring fitness issue cost him his place against Paraguay, and that same concern has him starting on the bench against Morocco.