France defends Golden Ball winner Dembélé, responds to criticism during World Cup

France beat Senegal 3-1, a scoreline that looks respectable. But the broadcaster's stat sheet for Ousmane Dembélé, showing zeros across the board, directly pinned the 2025 Ballon d'Or winner to the tactical board.

At 29, with 19 appearances in major international tournaments, his goal count remains stubbornly stuck at zero.

When he was substituted early against Senegal, Dembélé's expression on the sideline was even uglier than those numbers. TV pundits in the studio tore him apart, and fans lined up on social media to call him a flop.

The French dressing room, however, was playing a different game of protection.

Just days earlier, Dembélé had defended his captain in a media interview, stating that the criticism of Mbappé was unfair. Before the words had even faded, he himself, after a poor opening game, became the target of the backlash.

Mbappé's return favor came swiftly. At the pre-match press conference against Iraq, the captain laid the Ballon d'Or title on the table, emphasizing that Dembélé remains the core of the French team.

You shield me from the bullets of public opinion, and I'll use the captain's armband to guarantee your starting spot.

Didier Deschamps quickly offered a tactical fig leaf. Faced with questions about the zero stats, the coach stubbornly pointed to Dembélé's off-the-ball movement and spatial stretching. The visible stats are poor, but the invisible contributions are maximized—this is the standard rhetoric the coaching staff uses to mask the front line's struggles.

In Deschamps' tactical setup, Dembélé playing centrally behind Mbappé is indeed awkward, and moving him to the wing hasn't brought back his flair from Paris. But touching Dembélé's starting spot means touching the fundamental power structure of France's attack. Neither Deschamps nor Mbappé would allow that.

Looking away from the dressing room, Dembélé's slump also has a messy backstory.

During a previous international break, Dembélé got injured. This directly ignited the powder keg between Paris Saint-Germain and the French Football Federation. PSG's hierarchy believed the national team's rough usage caused the player's injury, while the federation felt the club was coddling the player as if he were private property.

This tug-of-war between club and country over the player ultimately turned into tiny tears in Dembélé's muscle fibers. In the World Cup opener, he couldn't run and couldn't hold the ball. Tactical incompatibility can't whitewash his poor form. Taking the field carrying the hidden wounds from the squabble between the two organizations, even a Ballon d'Or winner can't produce the stats of a football king.

Against Iraq, Dembélé's name is still on the starting lineup. The broadcaster's zero stat sheet has been cleared and reset. When the next whistle blows, just watch his touches on the ball.