The 2018 World Cup was symbolic for France. Twenty years on from when Zinedine Zidane, Didier Deschamps, Laurent Blanc and more led Les Bleus to World Cup glory, they were gunning for more with a group that made others envious.
There was always a sense of doubt around France, though, especially given that the previous eight years had been so mixed, both in terms of results in major international tournaments and changes in personnel. The group was talented, having at least two fine footballers in just about every position, and they wanted a second world title.
This cycle of French football – between 2010 and 2018 – saw drastic changes. The 2010 World Cup in South Africa was one of French football’s most bizarre moments. Coach Reymond Domenech was widely disliked by his squad, who were in mutiny, and they suffered an embarrassing group stage exit.
Two years later, they had a few encouraging performances under Laurent Blanc, who had done well in the qualification cycle, but they needed more: the youth set-up was improving, talented players were coming through, and they went the way of Deschamps, the World Cup-winning captain, as their new head coach.
In 2014, there was another promising display: France reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup, falling to eventual champions Germany. At Euro 2016, the tournament hosted on home soil, they impressed their way to the final. Beating world champions Germany was another good sign. Ahead of their final against Portugal, all the odds favoured them, but a lethargic display at the Stade de France saw them fall to defeat, as Eder’s extra-time goal forced them to defeat, and questions were raised over Deschamps’ future: losing a home tournament in that fashion was unacceptable.
France play Portugal today for the first time since Eder stunned us with this beauty to win Euro 2016 😱
(via @EURO2020)pic.twitter.com/JcVgQgedmr
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) October 11, 2020
France stuck with Didier Deschamps
The French Football Federation stuck with Deschamps for the 2018 World Cup cycle. This was probably his last chance, but his squad were with him all the way. For Deschamps, he was popular amongst the players for building unity in the team and maintaining its harmony, and that led to some brave decisions. In previous years, he had dropped Karim Benzema – France’s best number nine – for his off-pitch controversies, and opted to go with Olivier Giroud, who was creeping up the all-time goalscoring charts for France.
For the World Cup, he stuck with that call. Other personnel had also grown. Antoine Griezmann was given his first break in 2014, then proved his qualities in 2016 and he was set to have an integral role in Russia. The same went for Paul Pogba, who was the Young Player of the Tournament in 2014 and was to be at the heart of the French midfield in 2018. Hugo Lloris was still trusted as captain, Raphael Varane had become a leader at the back, and there were two names who had rapid rises in recent times that were set to be integrated into the team as well as the French were gunning for World Cup glory.
N’Golo Kante had a swift rise since breaking through at Leicester City in 2015, and then won league titles with the Foxes and then Chelsea in 2017. He was now amongst the world’s best midfielders, add after being a part of the Euro 2016 squad in a sporadic way, he was set to have a big role for the World Cup.
Kylian Mbappe, meanwhile, was a teenager on the rise, having had a starring role in Monaco’s role to the Champions League semi-final in 2017, before agreeing a deal to become the world’s most expensive teenager as he joined Paris Saint-Germain. Both were now key cogs in Deschamps’ machine. For Deschamps, there was a great mix of youth and experience. He demanded discipline above all. His decisions and selections showed it. Like Aime Jacquet, the last World Cup-winning manager for France, he made exceptional selection calls, dropping big names like Eric Cantona and David Ginola over the course of his tenure.
He also adopted a more conservative set-up: the attacking talent was brilliant, but he wanted a team that could win him a game, and help carry France forward. That was evident in the matches Les Bleus played over the course of the tournament.
In the group stage, France squared up against Australia at first, in what was a rather underwhelming win. Deschamps started with a flair-filled trio of Griezmann down the middle, who was flanked by Ousmane Dembele and Mbappe. The French were sluggish, needing a penalty and own goal to win, and they conceded won of their own in a 2-1 success. The result was there, but the feeling was that the attack didn’t have the right balance to propel them to World Cup success, prompting changes from Deschamps ahead of their next match against Peru.
Giroud was now brought into the team to lead the line, with Mbappe on the wing and Griezmann just behind him. Mbappe scored the only goal of the match, and while the win was there and qualification was sealed, the negative feeling still didn’t go away. The French still hadn’t convinced, and the next match, a goalless draw against Denmark – the only goalless match of the tournament – didn’t raise much hope either.
They would need sweeping improvement in the knockout rounds, starting with a match against Argentina, if they wanted any hope of winning the World Cup for a second time. In Kazan, France met Argentina and started off well: Griezmann converted an early penalty to give his side the lead.
Things changed quickly, however, as Angel Di Maria’s brilliant long-range goal and Gabriel Mercado’s strike put them 2-1 behind at the start of the second half. They weren’t behind for long, as a French blitz, starting with a wonderful Benjamin Pavard strike – which was the Goal of the Tournament – and two Kylian Mbappe goals turned things around and even a late Sergio Aguero goal was too little, as France went through. Optimism was now higher.
🇫🇷 Benjamin Pavard’s strike against Argentina in the 2018 World Cup doesn’t get old. 🚀pic.twitter.com/4HWkNKEeEm
— TEAMtalk (@TEAMtalk) March 28, 2020
How France went on to win the 2018 World Cup
Against Uruguay in the next round, the French were clinical: Varane’s header and Griezmann’s goal set up a comfortable 2-0 win, and Les Bleus were now two wins from the gold. Next up, Belgium, who had impressed so far having beaten Brazil in the previous round in a performance of counter-attacking excellence. Led by Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne, who were excellent all tournament, they were hoping to lead their golden generation to their first international tournament success.
In a tense game where Mbappe put on a great team display and Giroud proved why his inclusion was worthwhile. It was Samuel Umtiti – who had avoided surgery on a knee issue to play in this tournament – that scored the winner, and his strutting celebration afterwards became popular.
The French held on for a solid 1-0 win, and it was Croatia, who were looking for their first World Cup success, that they would play in the final at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.
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Going into the final, the French were fully fit and confident. Deschamps stuck with his guns: Giroud, who hadn’t scored all tournament, would continue. Mbappe and Griezmann were in top form. Pogba and Kante held the midfield well.
They started strongly too: Griezmann’s cross early on was met by Mario Mandzukic, who accidentally headed into his own net. Ivan Perisic equalised soon after, but Griezmann was involved again later on, netting a penalty. It was 2-1 at half-time, and going into the second-half, they wanted to add to that to seal the win.
They did just that. Pogba scored with his left from out of the box, and soon after, history was made as Mbappe’s shot from outside the box found its way into the net, becoming the first teenager since Pele in 1958 to score a goal in a World Cup final. Even a Lloris error later on didn’t affect France. They won 4-2, and a second World Cup success was sealed. Deschamps stern decision-making was vindicated, and he became the third person to win the tournament as both a player and coach after Franz Beckenbauer and Mario Zagallo.
“How marvellous!” Deschamps said after the win. “It’s a young team, who are on the top of the world. Some are champions at the age of 19. We did not play a huge game, but we showed mental quality. And we scored four goals anyway.”
It was historic. France got better as it went on, and as the players returned home, they were given a deserved welcome.
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