France head coach Didier Deschamps is set to return to the World Cup for Saturday's training session, assistant coach Guy Stephan confirmed. Deschamps flew home mid-week after his mother Ginette died, missing France's final group stage match against Norway.
FIFA Denies Black Armband Tribute
The French Football Federation (FFF) requested permission for players to wear black armbands during Friday's 4-1 victory over Norway at Boston Stadium as a tribute to Ginette Deschamps. FIFA rejected the request outright, according to the FFF.
Compounding the situation, the FFF initially told journalists that a pre-match minute's silence was held in honor of Deschamps' mother. However, officials quickly corrected that the silence was actually dedicated to more than 900 victims of devastating earthquakes in Venezuela.
Players Dedicate Win to Deschamps
Stephan, Deschamps' long-serving assistant, took charge for the match and oversaw a commanding win highlighted by Ousmane Dembele's first-half hat-trick. Stephan declined to address questions about the armband controversy but revealed how the squad responded to the tragedy.
"The players did what they had to do [against Norway]," Stephan said through a FIFA translator. "They were very affected by this loss. They heard Didier talk and tell them that he had to leave. They did hear that from Didier directly."
Stephan added: "They are very close to Didier and wanted to do something special on the pitch... I did congratulate them at the end of the match and said Didier will be back for the training session tomorrow and [before] the Round of 32."
Dembele's Historic Hat-Trick
Dembele's hat-trick came from just 0.29 expected goals (xG), the fewest for any hat-trick scorer in the modern World Cup era. All three goals were left-footed efforts, showcasing his clinical finishing despite low-quality chances.
Norway Rest Haaland
Stephan was spared from facing Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, who had scored four goals in his first two matches at the 2026 World Cup. Norway coach Stale Solbakken named Haaland and Martin Odegaard among substitutes, with Norway's place in the Round of 32 already secured.
"I feel [the fans in this] situation," Solbakken said at his post-match press conference. "But we have given them a couple of victories. We have given them an opportunity to win more games. We don't need to be the naive country that plays for fun.... Of course, it is something that I really feel, but it was a no-brainer [to leave Haaland and Odegaard on the bench]."
Norway made 10 alterations to their starting lineup, only the fourth instance in World Cup history of a side making so many changes between matches.
