‘Extremely happy’ Deschamps faces unwanted farewell in World Cup third-place match

Didier Deschamps’ remarkable tenure as France manager will end where no coach wants to bow out – in Saturday’s World Cup third-place play-off. The 57-year-old, who lifted the trophy as both a player in 1998 and a manager in 2018, saw his hopes of a third title shattered by Spain’s 2-0 victory in Tuesday’s semi-final in Dallas. France, who had romped through the tournament with sparkling attacking football, managed only 10 shots – their lowest total in a World Cup match – and posted an expected goals figure of just 0.3. The pre-match favorites never got going. “They haven’t shown up,” said former France midfielder Patrick Vieira, speaking to ITV. “I was expecting more. There was a big expectation for France to win the World Cup. All our top players went missing. Collectively we were really bad.” There was at least one milestone for Deschamps: his 26th World Cup match as a manager, breaking the record of 25 he had shared with former West Germany boss Helmut Schön. The game also confirmed that his final act in charge will be Saturday’s consolation match in Miami against the loser of England versus Argentina (22:00 BST). Deschamps announced in January 2025 that he would step down after this summer’s tournament. In his post-match press conference, he refused to dwell on his own future. “It’s not time to talk about the future,” he said. “It is not important on a personal level whether I leave a competition in a semi-final or final. I am extremely happy. I am very proud of everything we’ve done to reach this stage and to win a World Cup – to take the French team to the highest level.” France had been tipped to go all the way, with joint tournament top scorer Kylian Mbappé, Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé and Bayern Munich’s rising star Michael Olise leading the attack behind an established defense and midfield. Yet against Spain, the spark never came. Only three people have won the World Cup as both player and manager: Deschamps, Brazil’s Mario Zagallo and West Germany’s Franz Beckenbauer. His 14-year reign – a rarity in modern international football – saw France reach the quarter-finals in four consecutive World Cups, a feat only three nations have achieved. They came agonizingly close to retaining the trophy in 2022, losing to Argentina on penalties. Former France striker Olivier Giroud, a World Cup winner under Deschamps, paid tribute. “There was extra motivation for all the players at this World Cup to give Didier the ending he wanted, and deserved,” Giroud told the broadcaster. “He deserved to exit by the big door. He did not quite manage that but he is still a great, for what he has already done in his 14 years. His record does the talking for him.” Giroud added that Deschamps was “like a second father” for many players, though for himself it was more about the confidence the coach gave him. “When you are in the national team, you don’t have much time to work on tactics and each manager has their philosophy. For Didier, his was more like ‘you are big players, I leave you some freedom on the pitch.’ The biggest thing he taught us was his desire, and his drive and ambition to be the absolute best.” Former France full-back Gaël Clichy, who played in Deschamps’ first year in charge, also praised his old boss on broadcaster Radio 5 Live. Deschamps, who previously managed Monaco, Juventus and Marseille, took over from Laurent Blanc in 2012. His record – 20 wins from 26 World Cup games, with only three losses – speaks for itself. But Saturday’s third-place match will be a bittersweet goodbye.