Deschamps’ last dance, Mbappe’s record chase give unwanted third-place game an edge
Soccer Football – FIFA World Cup 2026 – Semi Final – France v Spain – Dallas Stadium, Arlington, Texas, U.S. – July 14, 2026 France’s Kylian Mbappe with coach Didier Deschamps after the match IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Tim Heitman
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July 16 : France and England will have to pick themselves up from crushing World Cup semi-final defeats for Saturday’s third-place game, with Didier Deschamps taking charge of Les Bleus for the final time and Kylian Mbappe chasing individual history in a game likely to feature sweeping changes on both sides.
France’s hopes of reaching a third successive World Cup final were emphatically ended by Spain in a 2-0 defeat on Tuesday, while England suffered their own heartbreak a day later with a 2-1 loss to Argentina.
The Miami match will bring down the curtain on Deschamps’ 14-year reign, during which he led France to the 2018 World Cup title, the final four years later and three successive World Cup semi-finals.
While the 57-year-old had hoped to leave with a second world title as a coach, Saturday offers his players one last opportunity to send off the man who established France as one of international football’s most consistent forces over the past decade.
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With both teams physically and emotionally drained after deep runs through the expanded 48-team tournament, however, the traditional bronze-medal match may feel like an unwanted assignment for players who arrived in North America dreaming of lifting the trophy.
“None of these players, none of the French players want to play this match. They want to play in the final. We gave everything to be in the final,” England coach Thomas Tuchel said.
France are expected to rotate their starting lineup significantly, giving opportunities to players who have featured less during the tournament, while Tuchel could take a similar approach after his side’s exhausting campaign.
There could, however, be one compelling reason for France captain Mbappe to start.
The 27-year-old has scored eight goals at this World Cup and 20 overall, leaving him in contention for the Golden Boot and within reach of the tournament’s all-time scoring record.
With little collective pressure attached to the third-place playoff, the match could offer Mbappe a final opportunity to turn a disappointing end to France’s campaign into another landmark moment in a career already defined by the World Cup.
England will have their own disappointment to overcome after coming agonisingly close to Sunday’s final, and Tuchel may also use the game to give minutes to members of his squad who have spent much of the tournament on the sidelines.
The stakes may be lower than either team wanted, but for fringe players there will be an opportunity to make a final impression, while for Mbappe and Deschamps there remains something more tangible on the line: history for one and a winning farewell for the other.
Source: Reuters
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