Michael Olise setting the World Cup tone for France with Man of the Match performance against Senegal
Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise may not have found himself on the scoresheet in France’s FIFA World Cup 2026 opener against Senegal in Group I, but his stunning display on his tournament debut for Les Bleus was deserving of the Man of the Match award.
Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé may have grabbed the headlines as his brace helped not only fire Didier Deschamps’ side to a 3-1 victory, but also saw him become France’s all-time top scorer with 58 goals. Regardless, it would not have been possible without the creative brilliance of Olise behind him.
In what was at times a disjointed first 45 minutes for the 2022 runners-up, which finished goalless courtesy of a resilient and well-organised Senegalese defence, Olise remained a livewire on the right flank and was constantly looking for ways to involve himself, even popping up by the corner flag on the opposite wing in an attempt to simply make things happen for the French.
The two-time world champions' fortunes would all change after the restart, though. At the interval, Deschamps elected to shift Olise into a more central role, swapping places with Ousmane Dembélé in a tactical decision that would pay dividends. Just past the hour mark, the Bayern man picked his head up before playing a defence-splitting pass to release Mbappé in behind, who in turn guided home the opener into the bottom left corner to get his side's World Cup campaign underway.
France’s second-half change in tactics was not lost on former striker Olivier Giroud, who was the man overtaken by Mbappé as Les Bleus’ record goalscorer. Speaking to the BBC, the 39-year-old explained: "By re-adjusting Olise's position to a more central one and closer to Mbappé, we could see the good understanding that they can have."
As Deschamps’ side claimed a 3-1 victory at the final whistle, Olise finished the game with one assist, 100% shot accuracy, 14 passes into the final third, and two big chances created all whilst covering the most ground (12.63km) and making the most sprints (79) of any player on the pitch.
Such figures will come as no surprise to Bayern fans, who watched Olise deliver 22 goals and 29 assists in 52 games in all competitions on his way to winning the Bundesliga Player of the Season award, as well as a domestic double with the Bavarians the campaign just gone.
Watch: Olise's 2025/26 season in retrospect
Although preferring to dwell on his side’s World Cup campaign in his post-match assessment rather than Olise’s performance, there can be no doubt that Deschamps absolutely recognises his winger’s importance to his team.
Following France’s final pre-World Cup friendly against Northern Ireland, in which Olise netted a hat-trick, the head coach had said of his star: “[Olise] is radiant through the season he has had at Bayern and with us as well. He is full of confidence. He is so decisive.” Needless to say, such decisiveness has not evaporated even with the competitive heat being turned up in the Americas.
