Is Paul Pogba playing tonight vs Ukraine? Team news for World Cup European Qualifiers

Defending World Cup winners France will look to qualify once again for the 2022 World Cup when they square off against Ukraine at the Stade de France. The match is scheduled to kick off on Thursday, March 25 at 1:15 AM IST. With so much on the line for France, it raises the questions - 'Is Paul Pogba playing tonight?' or 'When is Paul Pogba coming back?'

Is Paul Pogba playing tonight? Paul Pogba injury update

Paul Pogba has recently been a regular for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and he also started in Manchester United's last game against Leicester City on Sunday. Pogba appeared for 64 minutes in the match before he was one of the four to be substituted in a tactical change by Solskjaer. Moreover, the French international also scored for United in their 1-0 win against AC Milan in the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 second leg. With the Paul Pogba injury out of question and the player firing on all cylinders, we expect Didier Deschamps to start with the Frenchman in tonight's clash against Ukraine.

When is Paul Pogba coming back? Frenchman's return expected soon

With France having no injuries, Didier Deschamps will have an abundance of options to choose from considering the depth of the national squad. Besides the Paul Pogba return, PSG striker Kylian Mbappe, Real Madrid centre-back Raphael Varane and Barcelona striker Antoine Griezmann are all likely to feature alongside Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba. Similarly, Ukraine has no injury concerns either, suggesting that tonight's fixture could be a good contest with both teams on full strength. Below is the predicted starting line-up for both teams:

France: Hugo Lloris, Benjamin Pavard, Raphael Varane, Presnel Kimpembe, Lucas Hernandez, Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante, Kylian Mbappe, Tanguy Ndombele, Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud

Ukraine: Andriy Pyatov, Yukhym Konoplya, Illya Zabarnyi, Mykola Matviyenko, Vitaly Mykolenko, Ruslan Malinovskyi, Serhiy Sydorchuk, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Andriy Yarmolenko, Roman Yaremchuk, Yevhen Konoplyanka

France vs Ukraine prediction and preview

France arrive into this fixture in sensational form, making them all the more the favourites to win considering the Paul Pogba return. The 2018 World Cup winners last played against Sweden in 2018 and emerged with a thrilling 4-2 victory. A brace from Chelsea striker Oliver Giroud and goals from Bayern Munich stars Benjamin Pavard and Kingsley Coman enured the victory for France. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine head into this game following defeats to Germany and Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League. However, it is important to note that UEFA awarded Switzerland with the win after the Ukraine team was placed in quarantine as several players tested positive for COVID-19. Considering the form of the two teams heading into this game, our France vs Ukraine prediction is France 3-1 Ukraine.

Note: The France vs Ukraine prediction is based on our own analysis. This website does not guarantee 100% accuracy in the prediction.