How France maestro Michael Olise is going under the radar despite World Cup heroics

At times, Les Bleus have been unplayable, and their ability to find the back of the net from anywhere has made them the tournament's most threatening side.

Kylian Mbappe, who is the second-highest scorer in the competition behind only Lionel Messi, has quite rightly been earning the plaudits, but behind him, Michael Olise has been the puppeteer in Didier Deschamps' midfield.

Indeed, the Bundesliga Player of the Year is thriving in North America as DAZN News delves into his success.

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / Contributor

Michael Olise has been central to France's World Cup success

It has been the goal-scoring superstars who have been grabbing the headlines, with Mbappe, Messi, Harry Kane and Erling Haaland all dominating the World Cup conversation.

However, perched in behind France's frontline has been Bayern Munich's Olise, who has been dictating play and supplying Deschamps' lethal attack with its chances.

The 24-year-old ranks as the top creator at the World Cup with five assists to his name already, and he is just one short of Pele's record, which has been standing since 1970.

France have regularly been among the favourites at the big tournaments, but they have lacked a player capable of unlocking defences until now.

At Euro 2024, Deschamps' side were packed full of individual talent but had no connection, and Olise must be lauded as the man to knit his country's immense talent together.

Regardless of whether Les Bleus lift the trophy or not, the former Reading man is a shoo-in for Team of the Tournament, while he should also be in consideration for the Golden Ball.

Why Olise is out of the spotlight and why it is a positive

It feels odd that a player with Olise's influence has gone somewhat under the radar, but it has allowed him to focus on his game while others bask in the attention.

Mbappe is deep in the Golden Boot conversation and has produced some stellar moments for France, scoring in all but one of his country's matches, while he is just two goals behind Messi's all-time World Cup record.

The Real Madrid megastar is the face of Les Bleus, but Olise rivals him as their best player. Take the Bayern man out of the team, and the goals would not be flowing so freely.

While teams would be foolish to ignore the midfielder, the distractions of Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele provide opponents with reason to divert their attention from the maestro.

There will be times when sides frustrate Les Bleus like Paraguay did, and while there is Morocco to take care of first, Spain would provide the French with their sternest test yet.

If they are to go all the way, then France will need a player to unlock defences when space is minimal and in Olise they have the great code-breaker who could be the key to winning the ultimate prize.

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