Didier Deschamps on France's UEFA Nations League prospects and his 13 years in charge

A mighty defensive midfielder who helped France win the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA EURO 2000, Didier Deschamps has been in charge of Les Bleus since 2012, and continues to aim high as he prepares his side for the UEFA Nations League finals.

The 56-year-old has announced that he will step down as France coach after the 2026 World Cup, but he remains committed to bringing on a new generation of players.

On semi-final opponents Spain

Currently, Spain are certainly the best team in Europe, and in the world, and it's not just because they won the most recent EURO. They have a new coach, and new players with different characteristics. They've always had good ball control, but now they also have new abilities, especially attacking-wise, where they are very quick, especially [Lamine] Yamal and [Nico] Williams.

This French team has evolved over the last few years, with plenty of players retiring, and young, talented, players coming through. Since the EURO, the squad has got even younger, with plenty of quality, but they need game time, they need difficult periods as well, which we have had, in order to build and allow France to maintain its level.

On becoming a manager

Did I think about becoming a coach while I was playing? No, I really did not. I was playing for Valencia, in Spain, and I still had a year left on my contract, but I had a lot of injuries; I felt that my body was sending me a message and I had made the decision to retire. I was still quite young, I had not yet turned 33 and, really, I had planned on taking a break for a few years and on enjoying retirement.

However, during that last season, maybe six months or less into 2001, president [Jean-Louis] Campora asked me to come manage AS Monaco and I had to think about it. Deep down, I knew I wanted to be a manager at some point, but much later. However, since that train was passing by, I decided to jump in. So, in the end, only one week went by between my last game with Valencia and my first training session with AS Monaco.

Didier Deschamps at Valencia in his final season as a playerPA Images via Getty Images

On his goals when he took over as France coach in 2012

The France national team was coming out of a tricky situation. Laurent Blanc, who came just before me, had started to get things back on track. However, in 2010 [under Raymond Domenech], we had 'Knysna' [France's exit from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa], which was a disaster for French football, so it was time to restore pride in the blue, white and red shirt.

[I have led France to] six semi-finals and four finals in major tournaments. Not all of them were won, unfortunately. We have more matches today as head coaches than they used to in the 1990s. I don't know what the average longevity [of a national team coach] is. I can [guess based on] the UEFA and FIFA seminars after the major tournaments — so, basically, every two or four years, 50% of head coaches would change. There are requirements and expectations. So, if we're still here 13 years later, it's obviously because of the results.

Didier Deschamps in 2013, towards the start of his time as France coachAFP via Getty Images

On winning the 2021 Nations League

It was another tough period as it was just after [UEFA] EURO [2020], during the pandemic. It was quite complicated with an early elimination against Switzerland, in summer 2021. To be able to play those semi-finals and then the Nations League final in October put the French national team back where it was before that EURO – but this is what the top level is all about. The top level is uncompromising and getting there is very difficult. There's only one winner, and only winners are remembered.