France head coach Didier Deschamps saluted the resilience and dedication of goalkeeper Mike Maignan after anointing him as captain for the 2026 World Cup qualifying match against Iceland in Reykjavik.
Maignan, 30, will lead the side out at Laugardalsvollur Stadium on Monday night in the absence of Kylian Mbappé.
The Real Madrid striker returned to his club over the weekend after aggravating an injury to his right ankle during France's 3-0 win over Azerbaijan on Friday night.
Mbappé scored for the third time in the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign to help his team maintain their 100 percent record in Group D.
But his departure left Deschamps without a captain for the tie that could furnish the 2022 runners-up with a berth at next year's tournament if Ukraine and Azerbaijan were to draw on Monday night.
"Mike is a leader," said Deschamps of the player that he chose to replace Hugo Lloris after the defeat in the World Cup final in Qatar.
"Against Azerbaijan, when Kylian came off, Mike took over the armband," Deschamps added.
"The fact that he has been able to play so many matches means that he is solid. He is a great competitor, even in training.
"He is a workaholic, sometimes a little too much in my opinion. But that's how he is."
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Force with France
France have won 12 and drawn four of their encounters with Iceland.
Mbappé was the star of the show when the teams clashed at the Parc des Princes in September.
The 26-year-old former Paris Saint-Germain striker swept home a penalty on the stroke of half-time to cancel out Andri Gudjohnsen's opener for the visitors.
On the hour mark, Aurélien Tchouaméni lofted a pass over the Iceland midfield into the path of Mbappé who charged towards goal.
With the stadium anticipating another dead-eyed strike, he drew out the Iceland goalkeeper Elías Rafn Olafsson and passed for Bradley Barcola to slot the ball into the empty net.
After the trip to Iceland, France entertain Ukraine on 13 November and they end the qualifying phase for the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada on 16 November with a voyage to Azerbaijan.
