World Cup 2018: Top 10 Managers of the tournament

#3 Didier Deschamps

France v Croatia - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Final

After the Euro 2016 final, Didier Deschamps was one of the most criticized men in football. As hosts, France was considered one of the favourites.

While Les Blues reached the final, many argued that it was despite Deschamps’ tactics rather than because of them. In the final against Portugal, France was shocked by a Portuguese team far inferior in talent (especially after Cristiano Ronaldo went off).

Now two years later, Deschamps successfully managed to overcome that disappointment to become the third man to win the World Cup both as a player and as a coach.

This time Deschamps’s tactics indisputably helped his side. While he continued to set up the team in a conservative manner, this worked brilliantly as France had the best defence in the tournament. Les Blues only conceded four goals: one penalty stemming from a horrible Samuel Umtiti error, a worldie from Angel Di Maria, a deflection and a consolation goal.

Deschamps made several brave decisions which allowed the Les Blues to defend in such a manner.

For example, playing natural centre-backs Benjamin Pavard and Lucas Hernandez as full-backs not only solidified the defence but also allowed Pavard and Hernandez to flourish on the attacking end.

Similarly, the decision to play Blaise Matuidi as a left-winger worked excellently as the Juventus midfielder put in a brilliant shift each game. This defensive solidity has allowed the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann to prosper.

While Deschamps isn’t higher in this list because of the talent at his disposal, he can be indisputably proud of his tactics and decision-making at the tournament.