Michael Olise and Thierry Henry's case for France's key role

Thierry Henry walked out of France's 3-1 win over Senegal with a clear view of the hierarchy. Kylian Mbappé is still France's MVP, he said, but Michael Olise has become the team's most important player. Henry's point was not about star power. It was about control, and what changed once Olise moved into the number 10 role in the second half of France vs Senegal.

Henry's case for Olise

Henry said the match shifted once Olise moved inside. France had only 1 first-half shot against Senegal, their lowest group-stage total since Opta began tracking the World Cup in 1966, and Henry argued that the central switch helped unlock them. "I like the way he plays and I think the game changed in the second half when he went in the 10 position," he said.

The performance backed that up. Olise finished with 76 touches and 4 chances created, and he supplied 1 assist in the 3-1 win. Henry's bigger claim was even sharper: when Olise played in the middle, he stopped Senegal playing and kept their midfielder from getting the ball. That is a useful reminder that the best creative players do not just make the last pass, they shape where the game is played.

Why the number 10 role matters

Henry's line about France missing this profile for a long time says plenty about how he sees the position. He called Olise "that little number 10" and said, "that's the guy we've been missing for a long time in France." The version of Olise he likes is not a wide forward floating in and out of the game. It is the central connector, the player linking midfield and attack while also disrupting the opposition's build-up.

Patrick Vieira took the praise further. He said, "We had Michel Platini, we had Zinedine Zidane, and now we have Michael Olise." Vieira also described him as "a future Ballon d'Or winner" and stressed how his vision and passing put the attackers in the best possible conditions to score. That is high-end praise, but it fits the role Olise just played against Senegal and the level he has already shown for Bayern München and France.

His France numbers already point in that direction. Olise has 7 goals and 5 assists in 18 caps, while his 2025-26 season for Bayern produced 22 goals and 31 assists in 52 appearances. The form is not the issue. The question is whether France keep using him where he had the most impact on Sunday.

Mbappé still drew the headline moments with 2 goals and reached 58 for France, which is why Henry kept him as the MVP. But the game France got from Olise, especially after the half-time tweak, looked more important to the team's rhythm than the finishing touch. On this evidence, Henry's split verdict makes sense: Mbappé remains the star, Olise is becoming the player France run through.