For many, France's World Cup hopes rest firmly on the shoulders of PSG phenom Kylian Mbappe.
The World Cup winner has already scored three times for Les Bleus in Qatar, including both goals in the 2-1 win over Denmark that guaranteed a place in the knockout rounds, taking his international record to 31 goals in 62 games.
However, former captain Patrice Evra believes that while Mbappe is unsurprisingly having a fine tournament, it is not the 23-year-old who has been the best player for Didier Deschamps' side at the finals thus far. Nor does he believe Mbappe will be France's most important player from this point onwards, as they look to become the first back-to-back winners since Brazil in 1962.
The ex-Manchester United defender said: “Ousmane Dembele is doing more than Mbappe. Dembele is destroying every full-back. For me, he's the player of the tournament for France so far. I’ve been impressed with Antoine Griezmann. He's been a key player.
"Mbappe, I'm not surprised by him. He's breaking records, he's already on three goals.
"But Dembele is a threat every minute. Every time he's got the ball, he's been a threat. That's the player I hope stays fit, because he's France's most threatening player.”
France meet Poland in their first knockout game, having been surprised in their final group encounter, when - having already qualified - they fell to a 1-0 loss to Tunisia.
That game ended somewhat controversially, with Griezmann seeing a 98th minute equaliser ruled out by VAR - despite the goal having been given by the referee, who then appeared to let the game get back underway before blowing for full time.
Griezmann, now permanently back at Atletico Madrid following his ill-fated sojourn at Barcelona, has been operating largely in a midfield role during the tournament so far, linking play between midfield and attack, but also not shirking his defensive responsibilities either.
And according to Evra, he will be crucial in the knockout rounds, particularly given the absences of N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba.
“The key player for me is Griezmann right now,” added Evra, speaking to Betfair.
“He's tackling like N'Golo Kante. I know Griezmann, he's not the type of player you'd see doing those things. The game against Denmark, I was like, 'wow'. He was like the boss, he was the maestro. He didn't get enough credit.
“People were talking about Mbappe because he scored twice, but Griezmann was everywhere. He was running back, tackling, he had composure on the ball, playing with his head, he was really intelligent. So for me, Griezmann is the key player for France.”
For more from Betfair ambassador, Patrice Evra, head to Betfair.
