They say there's no I in team, but the return of French captain Antoine Dupont will be a big boost for the Rugby World Cup hosts and their hopes to win the tournament.
Dupont suffered a broken cheekbone in his side's 96-0 thrashing over Namibia and only two weeks later looks set to be available against Italy on October 7.
The 26-year-old underwent surgery after the head clash with Johan Deysel in the 46th minute of the match. For the incident, Deysel was given a five-match ban.
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"Antoine has been cleared to resume progressive physical activity," said the French federation.
"This activity will take place under the supervision of the French national team's medical staff."
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It's anticipated Dupont will likely wear some sort of face protection when he eventually makes his comeback.
While Dupont is set to return to training in the coming days, his selection for the Italy match is clouded to some degree given the strong position France find themselves in.
France currently leads Pool A on 13 points ahead of New Zealand and Italy, both who have 10 points.
It's expected France will beat Italy, even without Dupont, while New Zealand are set to face Uruguay a day earlier on October 6.
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