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By Tyler Erzberger
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After watching France's first four games at the World Cup, I have two strong opinions.
First, it will take a miracle for any team in the tournament, including Argentina and Spain, to keep this team from scoring at least two goals in a match. One of those teams could possibly beat France in a back-and-forth contest, but I just don't see how this team can be slowed down. There is far too much talent on the roster and bench for any backline or goalkeeper to fully stop for 90-plus minutes.
And secondly, and maybe more importantly in the grand scheme of the sport: Every club in Europe must stop Real Madrid from pairing Michael Olise up with Kylian Mbappe at the club roster.
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I don't care how much Bayern Munich is offered for Olise. Real Madrid could sell every other player on the roster except Mbappe and use that money to entice the German powerhouse, and I would tell Munich to hang up the phone and don't reply to their demands.
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Watching Olise and Mbappe play is like watching two superhumans sharing the same mind wavelength play at the highest level possible that the sport allows. One second Olise might have the ball at midfield, looking bored, and the next the ball is furiously moving towards the penalty box with Mbappe somehow finding himself free.
And if you want to double or triple team Mbappe?
Olise can shrug his shoulders and send a scream of a shot from outside the box, curling towards the far post.
If Madrid could somehow swing Olise to their team to pair with Mbappe, it would be the greatest one-two punch duo of the 21st century. And yes, I watched Lionel Messi and Neymar at Barcelona. Olise feels like he was crafted in a lab to be the perfect partner for Mbappe, with the two pinging the ball around like they're having a laugh at the park when they're taking on world-class players in the biggest sporting event of all time.
In four games, Mbappe has six goals. Olise has five assists and is the maestro of the this historic French offense. They've also done it against excellent competition: Senegal, Norway, Iraq, and Sweden. Only Iraq would be considered a walkover, yet, Mbappe and Olise have made it look as easy to score against Senegal as it was against Iraq.
If you're a fan of dynasties and want something that reminds you of when Barcelona had the aforementioned trio of Messi, Neymar, and Luis Suarez, then Real Madrid deploying Mbappe, Olise, and Vinicius Junior might bring you to support (even if it's for Real Madrid).
But if you don't want Real Madrid to win another three-peat in the Champions League, don't let Olise and Mbappe play outside of the French Men's National Team.
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