France face Türkiye with three center backs left, and a loss could still knock them out

France go into their Nations League group finale against Türkiye in Bordeaux on Sunday (8:45 p.m. local, 2:45 p.m. ET) with only three center backs in Zinedine Zidane's squad. Dayot Upamecano, the most experienced defender in the camp, left on Friday for personal reasons, a day after the 3-1 loss to Italy at San Siro. The French federation said he returned to Munich with the coach's approval and has not named a replacement. That leaves Ibrahima Konaté, Jérémy Jacquet and Leny Yoro.

France and Italy are level on 10 points in Group A1, Belgium have nine and Türkiye have lost all five of their games. A draw at the Matmut Atlantique is enough to send France to the quarterfinals. A win puts them first if Italy fail to win in Brussels tonight. A defeat, though, combined with a Belgium win over Italy, would drop France to third and out of the competition.

Thursday's defeat was the first of Zidane's tenure, and it came with a long absence list. Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, William Saliba, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Jules Koundé and Manu Koné all missed the trip to Milan through injury, according to France 24. Italy scored three goals from five shots on target and also missed a penalty.

The probable lineups published by Ouest-France have Konaté starting alongside Jacquet, who has three caps and struggled at San Siro. Yoro, with one cap, is the only other center back left. Malo Gusto, who had a difficult night in Milan, is expected to drop to the bench, with Saël Kumbedi in line for a first start at right back unless Zidane moves Andy Diouf across.

The thin defense is the reason the Mbappé news matters more than usual. Zidane confirmed on Saturday that his captain, who sat out Thursday as a precaution, is available. "We'd rather have him with us than not," Zidane said, per Ouest-France. Mbappé has 107 caps and 67 goals for France, and with Dembélé out and Désiré Doué doubtful after a dental injury, he is expected to play through the middle between Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola. Zidane would not confirm the position.

Zidane also brushed off reports of a strained relationship with Mbappé, calling the talk nonsense. Bordeaux carries a personal note for him: he played for the Girondins in the 1990s and made his senior France debut in the city in August 1994, scoring twice off the bench against the Czech Republic.

Türkiye arrive with nothing to play for, already locked into last place. That makes them dangerous in a different way: a team without pressure against a back line built in 48 hours. If Konaté and Jacquet hold up, France are through. If not, the result in Brussels decides whether Zidane's first defeat turns into his first elimination.