France have perfected the art of pragmatism. They absorb pressure, defend in numbers, lure their prey in, then strike in the blink of an eye. Sometimes, as England found out, they only need a couple of dominant spells. Such is life when you have Kylian Mbappé waiting to streak away on the counterattack, Antoine Griezmann finding little pockets of space and Olivier Giroud – still underrated, still going strong – waiting for an opportunity to fall his way in the penalty area.
It has been a winning formula for Didier Deschamps, whose team are two victories away from becoming the first country since Brazil in 1962 to retain the World Cup. France’s head coach does not worry about having more possession than the other team. Deschamps does not talk about having a philosophy. He thinks about the best way to win.
