French national team coach Didier Deschamps is flying back to France to attend his mother’s funeral and will miss the team’s final World Cup Group I match against Norway, the French Football Federation (FFF) announced on Tuesday.
Deschamps will not be present for training sessions leading up to the game, nor will he be on the bench for Friday’s fixture.
The FFF confirmed in a statement: “Didier Deschamps will not be able to oversee training sessions ahead of the Norway v France match. He will also be absent from the bench for Friday’s final Group I game.”
The federation added: “The national team coach learned this morning of the death of his mother and will return to France to attend her funeral.”
Assistant coach Guy Stephan will take charge of the squad until Deschamps’ return, a decision made in agreement with FFF president Philippe Diallo.
France have already secured qualification for the knockout stage of the tournament, having comfortably beaten Senegal 3-1 and Iraq 3-0 in their opening two matches.
They still have work to do to secure top spot in Group I though, as Norway have also won their opening two games, with Erling Haaland scoring four goals at this year’s tournament.
Deschamps is set to leave his role as France head coach after the World Cup having been in charge of the national team since 2012.
He was the France captain when they won the World Cup on home soil in 1998, and has had a successful 14-year reign on the touchline.
The standout moment came in 2018 when he led France to their second World Cup triumph following a 4-2 win over Croatia in the final in Russia.
With Deschamps at the helm, France have also reached two further finals at Euro 2016 and the 2022 World Cup.
They lost the former against Portugal 1-0 after extra time, while they were beaten on penalties by Argentina four years ago.
They will hope to go one better this time around, and have made a strong start as they chase down a third World Cup triumph.
