William Saliba and Adrien Rabiot were not involved in France’s first-team training session on Thursday, as per a report from L’Équipe.

Saliba is currently managing back pain. Prior to flying to the US, there had been fears that the Arsenal defender’s FIFA World Cup dreams could be curtailed by the issue. However, the severity of the problem has been downplayed by Didier Deschamps and France’s medical staff. It is still an issue that needs managing, however, and there is a prospect of Saliba undergoing surgery on the problem post-tournament. 

In what was Les Bleus’ first training session since arriving in Boston, Saliba did laps of the pitch with physical trainer Cyril Moine. He was joined by AC Milan midfielder Adrien Rabiot. He and Saliba were the only two absentees from the session. L’Équipe understands that there are no concerns about the fitness of either player. 

France will face Senegal in their World Cup opener on Tuesday.