EXCLUSIVE | Marcel Desailly: ‘Didier Deschamps has that winning mentality.’ | OneFootball

Get French Football News sat down with former France, Olympique Marseille, AC Milan and Chelsea defender Marcel Desailly to talk to talk about the France squad and the current issues surrounding his former club sides.

In this first of a four-part interview, we asked him to speak about outgoing France boss and long-time friend Didier Deschamps.

With Didier Deschamps about to embark on his last tournament as France coach, can you speak – as someone who has known him since you were both juniors – about him and what he has achieved?

I had him as my captain from when I was 14 in France’s youth team – we did the -15s, -17s, -19s, -21s and full France team together. You could immediately see that he was a born leader. Limited athletically speaking, but with a determination and professionalism and tactical understanding. So I knew that as soon as he ended his playing career, he wouldn’t want to be a businessman or go into philanthropy or endorsements. He just wanted to be a coach.

And he immediately showed his potential to become a great coach. He took over at AS Monaco and we saw his ability to be a real leader. He knows how to identify the key moments and to capitalise on them. That’s what marks him out.

And he is able to prove to you, from what he shows you in training, that you’re heading in the right direction – he gives you belief. And when you’re able to give the players confidence, that is crucial – that is what gives you that adrenaline to buy into the winning culture. Didier has that – that winning mentality.

He showed that very quickly at Monaco, with an average team with the likes of Patrice Evra, Jérôme Rothen, Fernando Morientes – everyone saw that this coach has something special – that he took a team that was good but not extraordinary to the Champions League final. Then he followed that up by taking over at Juventus, who had been relegated, and securing promotion to Serie A.

It’s a similar energy to Jose Mourinho, who took Porto to victory and then there was belief around him. Mourinho went to Chelsea so he had far more exposure because it was the Premier League, whereas Didier went to Olympique de Marseille – where he won them their only Ligue 1 title for decades. OK it was another time, Paris wasn’t at the same level, but he succeeded at Marseille which is a super-difficult club. He knew how to restructure them, to organise the administrative side and the sporting side, to guide the team to victory.

At that time he could have gone to China or elsewhere but he wanted to stay, he was appointed France coach after Laurent Blanc and he immediately put his stamp on the team. He reached the final of Euro 2016, bringing through a quality generation – with that winning mentality. They didn’t win but he instilled that culture in them – he knows how to select the right men.

Then came 2018! No one expected us to win at the beginning of the tournament. I said “France if everyone is at their best”, but I didn’t really believe it deep down. But he did it again, by putting in place the 4-2-3-1 [or an asymmetrical 4-4-2] built around Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kanté with Blaise Matuidi on the left. That’s where the magic was. Again, he knew how to pick the right men for the occasion, to give them the winning mentality and that confidence to take them all the way.

Then in 2022 he did it again. We won in 1998 and in 2000 but in 2002 we failed because we didn’t know how to manage the pressure of being world and European champions and trying to retain the title. Maybe it was because we didn’t have a coach with that winning mentality to push us to surpass ourselves again. But Deschamps had it. He renewed the team a little, he also relied on the old guard and he went all the way again. Say what you like but it came down to Randal Kolo Muani in the 122nd minute – but imagine if he’d scored that! Deschamps knew how to raise France to an unbelievable level.  

And the continuity is there. Look [at the recent international break] – he has successfully put together two teams. But props also have to go to the French youth system. Bravo! In every position, in every part of the pitch, we have three, maybe four, players.

Marcel Desailly was speaking exclusively to Get French Football News courtesy of BetVictor Online Casino

GFFN | Jeremy Smith