With some of the hottest prospects of Europe, Didier Deschamps’ France travelled to Brazil two years ago rated as one of the dark horses to bring the FIFA World Cup home.

Les Bleus started their campaign in a rampaging manner, with their top marksman Karim Benzema shattering whichever opposition came his way, assisted by a powerhouse of a midfielder in Paul Pogba, Blaise Matuidi and Antoine Greizmann while the backline featured the machine-esque bodies of Mamadou Sakho and Rafael Varane.

But their World Cup journey ended in a 1-0 quarter-final loss to Germany – the eventual title winners.

But the exit was not the end. It was a beginning – the beginning to France’s potential dominance at least in Europe, if not the globe.

Now, France are the hosts of the expanded Euro 2016 and they seem to have put the finishing touches to their vulnerabilities.

Deschamps’ side boasts quite clearly the best squad with high quality personnel in all departments of the game.

As hosts, they avoided the qualification process with Deschamps having made to do with international friendlies, and he is likely to go with a 4-3-3 formation which ensures the full utilisation of the best available XI.

Deschamps will however be without Benzema, who was not selected after his alleged involvement in a sex-tape blackmailing case related to compatriot Mathieu Valbuena.However, the void left by the Real Madrid marksman is not a big concern as France have a more than able strike force which consists of the likes of Olivier Giroud, André-Pierre Gignac and Anthony Martial.

Arsenal frontman Giroud is most likely to feature as Deschamps’ first-choice upfront as his ability to hold up the ball and release it to either wing during offensive play brings in the quality of Kingsley Coman and Griezmann.

“Olivier knows the faith that I have in him — what I expect of him. He has the character and the personality to get there. You can say what you like, [but] he scores goals. He’s just had his best season at Arsenal in terms of efficiency,” Deschamps told L’Equipe earlier this week.

Coman, 19, has had a stellar 2015-16 season at Bayern Munich on loan from Juventus. The winger’s pace and trickery saw him bag six goals and 11 assists for the Bavarians as they won a domestic double.

Griezmann, meanwhile, is more of a seasoned campaigner now. With 254 La Liga appearances, the 25-year-old provides experience on one flank, hence providing balance to Coman’s youthful existence on the other.

He played a big part in Atletico Madrid’s run to the Champions League final where they endured heartbreak in the penalty shootout while contributing 32 goals in 54 appearances across all competitions.

Another option that facilitates Deschamps to make effective use of Giroud is West Ham United attacking midfielder Dimitri Payet.

The 29-year-old impressed for the Hammers in the recently concluded season with extraordinary crossing ability and expertise with the dead ball whenever called up to take set pieces.

“With a free kick, Payet can bring you a victory,” noted former France winger Robert Pires.

Giroud will definitely benefit from Payet’s delivery as the marksman is known well for combining his aerial ability and physical presence in the box with his eye for goal.

Griezmann, Payet and Coman have no guaranteed places in the side as they are being provided with tough competition by Manchester United’s Martial.

The 20-year-old moved to the Manchester giants in a whopping £36m deal from Monaco in the summer and provides pace with clinical finishing ability.

Benzema’s domination kept away another talented striker from the French national side.

Having moved into obscurity by joining Mexican side Tigres last summer, Gignac’s chances of making the team seemed very slim.

But while the 30-year-old wasn’t able to cement his place in the national team setup while featuring in Ligue 1 for over a decade, the move to Liga MX gave him a new life.

Scoring 28 goals in 39 appearances for Tigres as they won the league, Gignac was named the Liga MX player of the year and will now provide competition to Giroud as the second choice central striker in the European Championship.

The shining star of the team, though, will arguably be the young, yet powerful Pogba.

The 23-year-old has drawn comparisons with the French great Patrick Vieira, who rates Pogba better than even himself.

“I was more defensive than he is. He carries the ball forward more and scores goals. He is also better technically and more talented than me at the same age. This is a player who can score 10-15 goals every season. I think he has more potential than me,” he said.

The Juventus man carries with himself loads of confidence and presence in the middle of the park which can intimidate the opponents most of the times.

The Manchester United academy product has shone brightly since his move to Juve and his growth has been immense considering his age.

Providing more offensive freedom to Pogba is the presence of N’Golo Kante, who just won the English Premier League with surprise packages Leicester City.

Kante’s tireless running and covering for defenders as a midfield anchor made him one of the mainstays of Leicester team that overcame the odds of 5000-1 and won the Premier League.

He will have another tireless runner in Blaise Matuidi to partner him in midfield.

But while the squad possesses attacking flair in abundance, Deschamps will feel short when it comes to the defensive options.

The biggest concern are ageing full-backs, Patrice Evra and Bacary Sagna while the absence of Sakho due to off-field doping concerns and Varane due to injury has put extra burden on the shoulders of Laurent Koscielny who will be partnered by either Adil Rami or Eliquiem Mangala.Deschamps led France to the Euro 2000 title as captain. Now, it remains to be seen whether he can repeat the feat as a coach.

The writer is a Dawn.com staffer

Twitter: @MirAliRed

Published in Dawn, June 11th, 2016