Guy Stéphan to deputise as Didier Deschamps mourns, rare stand-ins for France recalled | OneFootball

Guy Stéphan will lead France against Norway on Friday, 21:00, as Didier Deschamps departs following the death of his mother. It will be the second time he has deputised in their 14-year partnership.

According to L'Équipe, Deschamps learned on Tuesday morning, hours after the 3-0 win over Iraq. He will return to France to be with family and attend the funeral, so he will not be on the bench in the coming days.

The only other time Stéphan stepped up came in 2022 after the death of Deschamps’s father. Deschamps left on 31 May, and Stéphan led against Denmark on 3 June, France going ahead through Karim Benzema but losing 2-1 to an Andreas Cornelius double. Deschamps returned three days later for a 1-1 draw in Croatia, Adrien Rabiot scoring first.

In 2007 assistant Pierre Mankowski replaced the suspended Raymond Domenech for a Euro 2008 qualifier against Italy at San Siro on 8 September. UEFA banned Domenech for remarks it said discredited football, after he alleged bought referees in Italy and cited an under-21 qualifier where he felt cheated. The match finished 0-0.

In 1976 Michel Hidalgo stepped aside for a friendly with Poland at Bollaert on 24 April, handing the team to Henri Guérin. He had begun on 27 March with a 2-2 draw against Czechoslovakia, then chose to travel with the Under-21s for their Euro quarter-final. France won 2-0 without him, the first victory of the Hidalgo era that ended with the Euro 1984 title eight years later.

Source: L'Équipe