Didier Deschamps has rarely been seen, at least from the outside, as a highly proactive tactician.
For much of his reign, he has prioritised caution in his play, and has at times been accused by the French media of adopting a boring approach.
In this tournament, he appeared to give players greater freedom, only for Spain to then remind everyone why Deschamps was attracted to the handbrake in the first place.
His strengths lie more in his man-management, prioritising the squad environment across a long tournament.
During his reign, Deschamps favoured players who can live together and tolerate a high-pressure, high-emotion zone for up to seven weeks, a period that includes the pre-tournament training camps.
His players clearly bonded with him. Deschamps missed the final group game against Norway following his mother’s death, and when Mbappe scored against Sweden upon Deschamps’ return, he immediately ran to the coach to embrace him.
For Deschamps, this is the end of his time in charge of France. His likely successor, the soon-to-be-anointed Zinedine Zidane, is arguably the most famous French footballer of all time.
📝 @AdamCrafton_
🔗
