All posts tagged: france national football team

Four teams, 4 plans, 1 result: How France keep winning at this FIFA World Cup | Football News

Four teams, 4 plans, 1 result: How France keep winning at this FIFA World Cup | Football News

4 min readJul 11, 2026 06:00 AM IST France’s clash against Morocco was billed as the game of the quarterfinals. One that put a congregation of attacking talent that the French have pieced together against Morocco’s unending stamina. Instead, Boston, in its final game of the World Cup, witnessed yet another canter by the French to the finish line. It has been the story of this World Cup – different teams attempting their own spin in solving the French puzzle – each has failed at varying degrees. Senegal show glimpses The only sustained period of trouble that the French have faced in the tournament so far has been the first half of their opener against Senegal. The defending African Cup of Nations champions were incredibly organised and keen on physically imposing themselves on the French front four. They didn’t cede the possession battle to Didier Deschamps’ men and were competing on a level footing. But it all changed when Michael Olise switched from the right wing to the centre of the pitch and the devastating …

FIFA World Cup: High-flying France show they can be fashionably ugly too | Football News

FIFA World Cup: High-flying France show they can be fashionably ugly too | Football News

6 min readPhiladelphia (usa)Jul 5, 2026 06:17 AM IST The gloriously multi-dimensional French know many ways to kill the pesky cat disturbing their sleep. They could baffle them with their touch; they could bemuse them with their wits; they could pin them down with their muscle; they could play the piano, they could wield the sledgehammer too, which makes them the deadliest proposition in the tournament. The 1-0 victory over Paraguay that ensured quarterfinals was a triumph of their brawn, their capacity to outmatch gnarled men who tried to wrestle them, sometimes literally, at times harm them with a brand of cynicism that was strangely left unpunished. Wins as these don’t build an aura; but construct an irresistible energy that makes them feel unbreakable; that not even the extremest tactic could shake them. It was not France’s inability to score more goals that stood in a game that Thierry Henry commented, “football finally won” but their wherewithal and knowhow to nullify any strategies thrown at them. Kylian Mbappe, who scored the lone goal of the …

FIFA World Cup: Kylian Mbappe, France make it Didier Deschamps’ night | Football News

FIFA World Cup: Kylian Mbappe, France make it Didier Deschamps’ night | Football News

A blue cloth with flowers embroidered on its side greeted France manager Didier Deschamps, returning from his mother’s death, into the Metlife Arena. The message was simple but touching: “Didier, we are with you.” The emcee stopped the hip-hop song blasting from the loudspeakers. The players performed their warm-up drills without the usual frolics, but with an unusual sombreness. After the national anthem was rendered, the French fans chorused: “C’est vous, Didi!” You are the man. The understated French manager would be the man of the evening, although Kylian Mbappe nailed two goals of artful precision, Bradley Barcola exhibited his velvet feet with a goal cut from silk, and his flying Les Bleu eviscerated Sweden’s iron-willed defence (3-0). The signs are sinister and fatalistic for teams destined to stumble into them, shepherded by a manager that walks without aura or vanity. The arena was so emotionally charged that Deschamps eventually broke down. He shed a tear when he staggered to the tunnel. The face of calm creaked, touched by a moment that showed how much …

Zinedine Zidane to replace Didier Deschamps as France coach after FIFA World Cup | Football News

Zinedine Zidane to replace Didier Deschamps as France coach after FIFA World Cup | Football News

2 min readMar 24, 2026 11:54 AM IST French football legend Zinedine Zidane is expected to succeed Didier Deschamps as the head coach of the France national team in the summer once the FIFA World Cup ends. According to a report on ESPN, a verbal agreement has already been reached between Zidane and the Fédération Française de Football (FFF). According to reports in French media, Didier Deschamps, who is currently at the helm in France, will end his 14-year stint as the national team’s boss after the FIFA World Cup. The head of the French football federation, Philippe Diallo, told French newspaper Le Figaro on Sunday that they knew who Deschamp’s successor was going to be. While speaking about the new boss of France after the Football World Cup in USA, Mexico and Canada, Diallo ominously said: “I know who it is.” However, he stopped short of revealing the name of the man who will be French national coach. Zidane has had two stints as the manager of Real Madrid: in 2016-18 and 2019-21). Zidane’s …

Paul Pogba: A career destined for the stars that could end as one of the greatest what-if stories in football | Football News

Paul Pogba might never play a competitive football game again. The four-year ban for doping, unless he successfully revokes it – an unlikely outcome – would spell doom for a career that could be slotted straightaway into the textbook of cautionary lessons. It’s tragic that a career seemingly destined for the stratosphere could wither away in anonymity, even more tragic when the tragedy is largely self-scripted. The French midfielder’s career had all the narrative arcs to weave a rags-to riches-and-glory story. The deprived upbringing in a rough quarter of Paris for immigrants; the jaw-dropping skills that crammed Le Havre Academy with scouts; exit and return to Manchester United for a then-record British transfer fee; a World Cup winner at 25, with the author of a stunning goal in the final; multiple-time league winner with Juventus, touted as the heir to Zinedine Zidane; the future bright and sparkling, a potential Ballon d’Or winner. Instead of being a genuine great of the game, this would be one of the greatest what-could-have-been stories with deep layers of intrigue …