Didier Deschamps will miss France’s final World Cup group game after learning of his mother’s death on Tuesday morning, and minute silence today in football has turned that absence into the main story before Friday in Boston. France still go into the match with Group I on the line.
Philippe Diallo gave him permission to fly back to France for the funeral. Guy Stephan will take charge of the squad until Deschamps returns.
France and Norway in Boston
France meet Norway on Friday in Boston to decide the winner of Group I. They have already qualified for the knockout stages after beating Senegal and Iraq in their opening two games, but this is still the match that settles first place.
That makes the bench change more than a family absence. France will play the game that defines the group without the man who has run the national side since 2012.
Deschamps and France since 2012
Deschamps was captain when France won the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championship in 2000, then became manager in 2012. He also led France to a World Cup final win in Russia in 2018 and a defeat by Argentina in the final in 2022.
France beat Senegal 3-1 in New Jersey last week and Iraq 3-0 on Monday. The squad now moves into the Norway match with Stephan in charge, while the return date for Deschamps comes after the funeral in France.
