The injury to Matthieu Jalibert will force Fabien Galthié and his staff to undergo a major reorganization. Thomas Ramos could slip into the opening, but Antoine Gibert, Antoine Hastoy and others are pushing at the door. Whatever happens, the Blues coach has work to do.
At the heart of criticism since the start of the 6 Nations Tournament, Matthieu Jalibert injured his left knee against Italy And is forfeited for the rest of the tournament. While just a few months ago the French team could boast of having two, or even three very good players in each position, this injury puts Fabien Galthié in serious trouble and the suitors are not legion.
Ramos, the choice of continuity
The repositioning of Thomas Ramos, who has become accustomed to playing number 10 this season at club and who regularly trains in this position with the Blues, may seem like the logical choice. He knows it, has already slipped into it several times during matches and even often takes the role of opener during matches. But the Toulouse player has never started a match with the flocked blue jersey of number 10. Such a repositioning would also force Fabien Galthié to find a new full-back.
Louis Bielle-Biarrey, trained for the position, could logically claim it if the latter recovers from his injury. Léo Barré, very good since the start of the season with Stade français and who has joined the group of 34, is starting to show up. But the young Parisian has never played a single minute at international level. Romain Buros, also very good with his club for several months, was not called up by Fabien Galthié and seems to be starting from further away. If the Ramos option at the opening may seem interesting, it would force the entire back line to reorganize, even though we will already have to deal with the absence of Jonathan Danty.
Hastoy knows the system
The coach of the France team could then leave the full-back in his position. It will therefore be necessary to find an opener. The number 10 of Racing 92, Antoine Gibert, has been part of the blue group since the start of the year. But the young Ile-de-France native especially seems to benefit from his 9/10 versatility and has also never played a single minute with the rooster’s jersey.
Antoine Hastoy, excellent last season and present during the World Cup, has clearly fallen back in the hierarchy of the French XV and was not called up for the Tournament. This season, Hugo Reus is competing with him more and more in La Rochelle. The young opener has already caught the eye of the staff even if mentioning his summons still seems a little early. The pink soldier, Léo Barré (mentioned above), has the advantage of versatility (he was trained at the opening), but he has not been established there since the beginning of September and the third Top 14 day.
Very on his feet lately with Montpellier, Louis Carbonel does not seem to have all the cards in hand to find the XV of France and is even going far away. But if Fabien Galthié were to strike a big blow in the anthill, he could, as was once the case with the French team, apply “the policy of the man in shape”. But without its Minister of the Interior, the party managed foreign affairs in Canada, the coach is somewhat confused. A major reshuffle is therefore on the agenda and the hinge will inevitably be turned upside down.