Didier Deschamps is associated with one of the darkest pages of the France team. The man who would later become a double world champion, as captain and coach, was on the pitch at the Parc des Princes during the two terrible defeats against Israel and Bulgaria in November 1993. “An indelible disaster”according to the native of Bayonne.
Nearly twenty years later, the Blues have done even worse. Qualified for the World Cup in South Africa, the France team made a fool of itself in front of the world with the events in Knysna. Determined to strike to protest against the exclusion of Nicolas Anelka, Raymond Domenech’s men refused to get out of their bus, causing a real scandal.
However, Didier Deschamps, who was then head of Olympique de Marseille, was not surprised. “I knew something was coming. But not in detail and I didn’t think it would be this big. I remember taking the liberty of sounding the alarm anyway by telling some: ‘Be careful what you do’.” he explained in the columns of The Team in the run-up to the last World Cup.
“When you are in the French team, you have duties”
“Afterwards, when you live in isolation, you are not aware of the impact it can have. At the time, you may think it’s a good thing, solidarity and everything, but you have such a responsibility.”he continued.
Despite his status, Didier Deschamps nevertheless chose not to speak out at the time of the events. “When you are in the French team, you have duties, that’s what I tell my players. You are not here to receive. In 1998 we are at the top, in 2010 at the bottom of the abyss. It hurts, but I have a duty to reserve,” he explained.
