Football
Mark Rodden 8y

France's Jeremy Mathieu ready to step up if Varane misses Euro 2016

Barcelona defender Jeremy Mathieu feels he is ready to step in for France should Raphael Varane miss out on Euro 2016.

Real Madrid confirmed on Sunday that Varane, 23, is set to miss Saturday's Champions League final against Atletico Madrid due to a thigh problem.

The centre-back is now a major doubt for Euro 2016 as well, with tournament hosts France due to open their campaign against Romania on June 10 at the Stade de France.

There had been question marks over Mathieu's fitness as well after the former Valencia player hurt his knee in France's 4-2 friendly win over Russia in March.

But he was included in their Euro 2016 squad and feels in good shape after coming on as a half-time substitute in Barcelona's extra-time victory against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey final on Sunday.

"I felt good," Mathieu told AFP, "It's the first time that I've played for as long after my injury.

"I hope it's not too serious for [Varane] because he's an important player for the French team. He's the boss of our defence.

"It would be a big blow if he's not able to take part in the Euros.

"If we can do the job initially and he can come back [during the tournament] that would be good."

France can ill-afford to lose Varane for Euro 2016. They are already missing Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma through injury and have to make to do without Liverpool's Mamadou Sakho as well since he is serving a provisional 30-day ban for an anti-doping violation.

"I'm ready -- we'll see what the coach decides," Mathieu said of stepping in for Varane.

"I hope he'll come back as quickly as possible. If I have the chance to play, I'll give everything I've got -- like in every match."

Despite Mathieu's willingness, Manchester City's Eliaquim Mangala is considered most likely to partner Arsenal's Laurent Koscielny should Varane miss next month's matches.

As L'Equipe pointed out on Monday, Koscielny and Mangala have played just 135 minutes together for France and have not done so since June 2014.

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