Thierry Henry Says Michael Olise Has Overtaken Mbappe as France’s Most Important Player
Kylian Mbappe scored twice as France cruised to a 3-0 victory over Sweden to book their place in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16, but Thierry Henry believes the man behind Les Bleus’ success was Michael Olise.
The Bayern Munich midfielder delivered another standout performance, registering two assists and orchestrating France’s attack from start to finish. His display led Henry to argue that, while Mbappe remains France’s biggest star and leading goalscorer, Olise has become the side’s most influential player.
Henry Full of Praise for Olise
Having worked with Olise during his time with France’s Under-21 team, Henry said the 24-year-old possesses a level of vision and technical quality that sets him apart.
“What he does on the ball is second to none,” Henry said.
“Michael is a freak. The way he sees things is not the same as others. He sees everything so perfectly, so quickly. Sometimes if you’re not on his wavelength, he gets annoyed.”
Henry added that Olise regularly produced moments in training that amazed coaches.
“Sometimes he does stuff in training and you have to stop yourself from saying, ‘Wow, this guy is on another planet.'”
Summing up his assessment, Henry said:
“MVP will always be Kylian because of his numbers, but the most important player is Michael Olise.”
Olise Runs the Show
While Mbappe finished with two goals and Bradley Barcola added the third, Olise was the creative spark behind France’s dominant display.
He nearly produced one of the tournament’s finest moments midway through the first half, attempting an acrobatic bicycle kick that beat goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom before crashing against the post.
France eventually broke the deadlock just before half-time after Olise combined with Ousmane Dembele from a short corner, allowing Mbappe to cut inside and fire home.
Eight minutes into the second half, Olise delivered a perfectly weighted through ball for Barcola, who doubled France’s advantage.
He then capped off his brilliant display by splitting Sweden’s defence once again, sending Mbappe through to score his second goal and seal France’s comfortable victory.
Praise From Ibrahimovic and Hargreaves
Former Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic said Olise’s bicycle kick would have been “the goal of the tournament” had it found the net. Former England midfielder Owen Hargreaves was equally impressed, describing France’s attacking duo as “absolutely outrageous” during Fox Soccer’s coverage.
Another Record for Olise
Olise’s latest performance saw him reach five assists at this World Cup, making him the first French player to achieve that feat in a single edition since records began in 1966.
He also became the first player from any nation to record five assists at a World Cup since 1994, eclipsing the previous French benchmark of three assists jointly held by Antoine Griezmann, Youri Djorkaeff, Dominique Rocheteau and Jean Tigana.
France will now face Paraguay in the Round of 16, with Mbappe continuing his pursuit of the Golden Boot. But after another influential display from Olise, Henry’s claim that the Bayern star has become the heartbeat of Didier Deschamps’ side is gaining increasing support.
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