Deschamps' departure as national team coach doesn't seem right

Didier Deschamps can barely hold back his tears. The Basque from southern France, who usually comes across as rather reserved and composed, is showing emotion for once. The spectacular 4–6 loss to England in the bronze medal match was his 185th and final game on the sidelines for Les Bleus.

“I don’t want to cry in front of you, but I might, because I’ve received so much wonderful news,” the 57-year-old explained at the subsequent press conference. “It’s the end of a journey.” A journey that began at a low point for French soccer and became its most successful era.

Game Intelligence and Tactical Vision

Even as a player, Deschamps displayed the qualities that would make him an outstanding national team coach. “Dédé” excelled as a defensive midfielder, led France to the World Cup title as captain in 1998, and won the Champions League with Marseille and Juventus Turin. Eric Cantona once described Deschamps as a “water carrier” who retrieved the ball and passed it on to more talented teammates—players like Zinédine Zidane or Alessandro Del Piero. He himself didn’t possess stunning technical skill, but he had vision, game intelligence, and discipline.

"His" national team was also characterized by these qualities. Deschamps took over a team in turmoil. At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the players had made an inglorious mark on history with the famous "Knysna strike" against coach Raymond Domenech and had been suspended. Domenech’s successor, Laurent Blanc, threw in the towel after just two years and a quarterfinal exit at the European Championship against Spain, which went on to win the tournament. Things started looking up again under Deschamps, who restored structure to the team.

A Good Eye for Stars

In 2018, France won the World Cup; four years later, it lost in the final only after a penalty shootout, and in 2016, it reached the European Championship final and lost to Portugal in extra time. Deschamps managed the feat of keeping his squad—packed with highly talented stars—happy while demanding discipline and order from them. That is, until this, his last World Cup.

The coach from southern France had been criticized, in part, for playing a style of soccer that was unspectacular—successful, but somewhat boring. Spectacle isn’t his thing, as was evident not least during the presentation of the World Cup roster. No silly scavenger hunt, no spectacular TV show. Deschamps read off his 26 names in a matter-of-fact tone during the evening news broadcast on TF1.

In North America, however, his players put on a spectacular show. Deschamps consistently selects four clear offensive artists; France storms into the semifinals with thrilling soccer and establishes itself as the favorite to win the title—before crashing against the Spanish collective. A team that much more closely embodies the philosophy of the French coach, who, after all, was born just 30 km from the Spanish border.

But he also found himself in the spotlight more than he would normally like due to a personal tragedy—the death of his mother during the World Cup. “My personal situation, which I wouldn’t wish on anyone, took a lot out of me,” Deschamps admits.

Nothing is greater than France's national team

It wasn’t the ending he had hoped for. Not a third consecutive World Cup final, and a dismal performance by his team in the first half of that inconsequential match against England. Deschamps, however, strikes a conciliatory tone and looks back on his fourteen years with pride and joy. “It’s the end of one of the most beautiful things in life,” he notes. “I’ve put this team above everything else. You can be the coach of any major club in the world, but there’s nothing that takes precedence over the Equipe de France.”

Now Deschamps is heading off with his family for a well-deserved vacation. His successor is likely to be his former teammate, Zinédine Zidane. He’s taking over with a promising outlook, according to his predecessor. “Everything we need is in place, including young players who are still getting better,” said Deschamps. He concluded with an appeal to the media: “Always remember that respect is the most important thing. You can criticize and disagree, but respect must never be lost.”