Mathieu Jalibert’s knee injury, which could rule him out for the rest of the tournament, is a fresh blow to the France XV coach, who clearly doesn’t need him at the moment.
Clearly, nothing is going well for Fabian Galthy at the moment. After an opening slap against Ireland, then a gutsy and miraculous success in Scotland, France’s XV conceded a draw to taste defeat against Italy (13-13) on day three of the 6-nation tournament. And while the Blues are unfamiliar with the game, the French coach has again lost two vital elements of his back line.
In addition to Jonathan Dainty, who received a red card and should logically have received a suspension, Galthy also undoubtedly lost Mathieu Jalibert. The UBB opener suffered a left knee injury and seeing him on crutches at the end of the match is a very worrying image for the French XV (and for Jalibert’s club).
Who at number 10 against the Welsh?
On France television, Galthy mentioned an injury to the medial collateral ligament for Jalibert. While awaiting a more definitive diagnosis, the French staff should prepare to align the new hinge. With Galthy already having to cope without Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamac, the loss of Jalibert’s ability to study is a new blow.
Against Italy, the coach did not have a professional number 10 on the bench at his disposal. Jalibert was replaced by Yorem Moifana, while Thomas Ramos slipped into the opener, where he currently plays with Toulouse in Ntamack’s absence. It was Mathis Lebel, called last, who unexpectedly took a seat at the back. Will Galthy bring Ramos back to No.10 for the match against Wales? Another option leads to the other opening half on the list, the inexperienced Antoine Guibert (26 years old, Racing 92), who does not yet have any international selection.
