Nations League Games Offer Last Chance To Prepare For FIFA World Cup

A hectic schedule of club football ahead of the World Cup is interrupted this week as national teams get a last chance to finetune their preparations before travelling to Qatar for the start of the tournament on November 20. Holding the World Cup in the middle of the European season is having major consequences for clubs but also for coaches of national teams.

While domestic competitions bear the brunt of the upheaval to the calendar as they are forced to halt a week before the opening game in Qatar, that also means there will be next to no time for squads to work together before beginning their World Cup campaigns.

Extra importance is therefore placed on events over the next week, as European sides complete the UEFA Nations League group stage while other contenders play friendly matches, including back-to-back games for Brazil on French soil against Ghana and Tunisia.

- French concerns -

Reigning world champions France are preparing to defend the crown they won in Russia in 2018 while simultaneously trying to avoid being relegated from the top tier of the Nations League.

Les Bleus, who won the Nations League last year, host Austria on Thursday and visit Denmark on Sunday needing to win both games to be sure of remaining in League A.

But France coach Didier Deschamps has numerous issues, not least injuries to key players including Paul Pogba -- he is recovering from a knee operation which has left him facing a race against time to be fit for Qatar.

"He will do everything to try to be fit as quickly as possible, despite the lack of time," Deschamps told broadcaster TF1 on Sunday.

It is also too early to say if a dispute between Kylian Mbappe and the French Football Federation over image rights could impact squad morale,