Les Bleus opting for an attacking formation for Chile match

Surprise surprise, Blanc announces what appears to be a very offensive minded formation! What appears to be a 4-3-3 could really be seen as a hybrid Spanish formation: 4-1-4-1. A very offensive midfield.

The line up: Lloris - Sagna, Kaboul, Abidal (cap.), Clichy - Mvila, Martin - Rémy, Nasri, Malouda - Benzema.

No surprise at the back, with the absence of France's first choice central defensive pairing, Blanc opts for what appears as his most steady combination. Sagna and Clichy are natural choices on the flanks, especially with Abidal being asked to slot in the center and Evra having sat out.

Also no surprise that we see Benzema up front, based on his recent form as well it should be interesting to see if he can find some goals for Les Bleus. Here is the surprise for me - Martin, Nari, Malouda and Remy with only M'Vila as your natural holding player. That quartet of offensive midfielders looks to do what Spain does so well - keep possession. While I realize you can line up Martin deep, next to M'Vila, he is really more offensively geared. Now his talents can be leveraged to spring counter attacks from deep as well as be a late runner into the offensive actions. The formation could also swing to a 4-1-3-2 with Remy pushing up high on the right flank to shoulder Benzema.

It should be interesting to see how the game and team evolve during the match. Clearly Blanc is not afraid to try new formations and look to get his best players on the pitch, good for him. Unlike the previous regime, who stuck to one formation whether in the middle of a World Cup game, qualifier or friendly.

This should be very insightful.

Allez les Bleus