MATCH INFO
On matchday five for both nations, the top two teams in World Cup 2022 qualification Group D prepare for a showdown in Kiev on Saturday night, as Ukraine hosts France at the NSK Olimpiyskiy.
Last time out, Oleksandr Petrakov's resident draw specialists played out a dramatic 2-2 tie with Kazakhstan, while France only managed a point against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Team News
Due to an accumulation of bookings, Manchester City left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is playing in his midfield role for Ukraine, will miss out today, allowing Mykola Shaparenko to start.
Petrakov is using a 3-4-2-1 formation for his first game as coach, with Ruslan Malinovskiy and Viktor Tsygankov battling for slots behind Yaremchuk after Vitaliy Buyalskyi was given an unexpected start against Kazakhstan.
Andriy Lunin, Heorhiy Bushchan, and Anatoliy Trubin, three goalkeepers, have all been forced to withdraw for various reasons, thus Andriy Pyatov, 37, will make his 99th international appearance in Kiev.
Due to the suspension of Jules Kounde and the absence of Benjamin Pavard due to injury, France manager Didier Deschamps should bring in Leo Dubois to an otherwise unchanged backline.
Kylian Mbappe was said to be suffering from a calf ailment in midweek, but he still managed to play 89 minutes, and he will be evaluated ahead of Saturday's game.
Matteo Guendouzi and Adrien Rabiot, who replaced N'Golo Kante and Corentin Tolisso for the Bosnia game, will be available here, and the latter has a good chance of teaming up with Paul Pogba in the midfield.
Last time out, Jordan Veretout and Aurelien Tchouameni were both given
their international debuts, with the former starting from the start, but
both men may battle for minutes now that Deschamps' midfield
reinforcements are ready to go.
