France are set to be without one of their stalwarts in Adrien Rabiot for their Euro 2024 quarter-final clash against Portugal tonight.
The midfielder, who is now a free agent after his Juventus contract expired, remains one of Didier Deschamps‘ most trusted players.
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Despite France boasting a full squad packed with talent, Rabiot has started all four of their games this summer.
He even deputised at left-wing for the goalless draw with the Netherlands after Kylian Mbappe was ruled out with a broken nose.
However, Les Bleus will now be without him for their biggest game so far as they face Cristiano Ronaldo and co, live on talkSPORT.
Why is Rabiot not playing against Portugal?
Rabiot is serving a one-game ban after becoming the latest player to be sidelined for picking up two yellow cards before the semi-finals.
The 29-year-old’s second booking came in the 1-0 win over Belgium in the round of 16 for a rash challenge on Jeremy Doku.
It happened midway through the first 45 minutes despite captain Mbappe‘s best efforts to plead his case with referee Glenn Nyberg.
This shows how valued Rabiot is by his teammates because Mbappe knew he would be banned from any potential quarter-final.
Now that France’s spot in the last-eight has been confirmed, Rabiot was left disappointed he won’t play any part against Portugal.
He told RMC Sport: “I’m disgusted to have taken this yellow. I find that the refereeing at the start of the match was a little limited.
“But I have confidence in the guys on the bench, I will be behind them.”
Rabiot’s first yellow came in the 1-1 draw with Poland, so he knew he was walking a disciplinary tightrope heading into the Belgium clash.
Unfortunately for him, he didn’t manage to avoid a booking against the Red Devils, and Deschamps will now have to tinker with his team.
Luckily, he has plenty of talent to choose from on the bench, with Eduardo Camavinga replacing him.
The Real Madrid man is a like-for-like option in central midfield and is playing alongside clubmate Aurelien Tchouameni.
Should France get through, they would face Spain, and Deschamps would no doubt welcome Rabiot back with open arms for that one.
talkSPORT will bring you live commentary of the Euro 2024 final on Sunday as England bid to make history against Spain. Tune in via the website or the app, and follow our live Euro 2024 blog for all the build-up.