Three weeks of international pause brought Zinédine Zidane back to the centre of French football, but Didier Deschamps’ exit has not quietened the arguments left by the World Cup. France’s 2-0 semi-final defeat to Spain at the 2026 tournament remains a raw point, particularly after players including Adrien Rabiot and Kylian Mbappé questioned the preparation and tactical approach used against La Roja.
Christophe Dugarry believes those complaints have come far too late. The former France forward said players should not wait until a coach has departed before challenging decisions publicly, especially when Deschamps is no longer in a position to answer them.
Dugarry has never concealed that he was not an admirer of Deschamps as a coach. Even so, he described the former manager’s 14-year spell in charge as successful, above all for its consistency, while arguing that the cycle should have ended five or six years earlier.
Dugarry calls for player accountability
For Dugarry, the issues raised after the Spain defeat should have been addressed internally long before Deschamps left his role. He pointed to France’s 2022 World Cup final against Argentina, when Les Bleus spent much of the match under severe pressure before their late recovery, as well as the previous European Championship semi-final against Spain.
“If they believed the game plan was wrong, they needed to say so at the time,” Dugarry said. “They should have gone to the coach, explained what was happening and made their feelings known earlier.”
He also returned to the long-running debate over the quality of France’s football during Deschamps’ reign. Dugarry said criticism of the team’s style was often dismissed because results were strong, with the argument repeatedly being that winning mattered more than the manner of victory.
Now, with Zidane taking over and the World Cup disappointment still close, Dugarry insists the responsibility cannot be placed solely on Deschamps. He said the players were equally accountable for the heavy moments against Argentina and Spain, adding that France had looked clearly inferior in their recent meetings with the Spanish side.
