The French community was given difficult news on Tuesday, as FOX reporter Jenny Taft reported that club manager Didier Deschamps will miss the third World Cup group stage match against Norway due to the death of his mother.
Our @JennyTaft reports that France manager Didier Deschamps will miss his team’s final group stage match vs Norway due to the passing of his mother. pic.twitter.com/tpjKflvQBJ
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 23, 2026
France takes on Norway on Friday, June 26 at 3:00 ET/noon PT. Both teams are 2-0 with six points, but France is at the top with a +5 goal differential.
The French squad will play with pride on Friday without their manager there for what should be a very emotional match for both sides. First place in Group I is on the line, and the winner will have a slightly easier path to the finals, where France has been the last two World Cups.
All eyes will be on Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland. Both have four goals each in two games and are in the running for the Golden Boot, competing with Lionel Messi. Someone else could emerge and take it from one of those three, but with the likelihood that France and Argentina will make it to at least the quarterfinals, the Golden Boot winner must score at least 7+ goals with at least an assist or two.
The winner of this match would win Group I, and that would set them up for a match against the third-place winners of Groups C, D, F, G, and H. The winner of that Round of 32 match would then likely face Germany in the Round of 16. Whoever finishes second would face the second-place winner of Group E, lining them up with a potential match against Brazil in the Round of 16. Anything can happen over the next week, but those are the likely scenarios.
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