​For a man who led France with such distinction, it was not a Bastille Day to savour. Didier Deschamps led his country for longer than Charles de Gaulle, albeit in rather different roles and with a less bombastic style. But he is football’s most decorated Frenchman on the global stage. On a day seemingly designed for the French, however, his World Cup in effect ended. Spain outclassed France in Dallas.After 14 years, after this 14 July, his reign only has a third-place play-off to come. There will be no third World Cup for Deschamps as player or manager, no third consecutive final in the dugout. He can retire the dark suit and white shirt he wore even in the 100-degree heat of Philadelphia. He can still figure in the conversations for the best World Cup manager of all, but victory in New York on Sunday could have rendered him the nonpareil.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“It was not important on a personal level if I leave in a semi-final or final,” said Deschamps. In a sense, there was no false modesty; Deschamps has not made it about him, always designing his team around his players, not vice versa. Yet when he reached the end, it was to a side built around a philosophy, a style of play, an identity. In a sense, Deschamps has seemed the ultimate international manager, since international football can be based around building an environment that players enjoy and is decided by moments. Kylian Mbappe can be the best moments player in the world, France the best moments team; but there were no moments against Spain, who suffocated the French forwards and passed with intelligence. They were less reliant on the spectacular.Until they reached Texas, Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise had obliged; against Senegal, Iraq, Norway and Sweden, and then in a six-minute burst against Morocco. It illustrated that France possessed attacking talent of the highest quality in greater depth than anyone else. Olise was outstanding in the first four games, when France scored 13 goals; less so in the last three, when they got three. Dembele, after his 2022 World Cup ended so ignominiously, proved there were second acts in Deschamps’ France, with five goals. Mbappe delivered in every match, except against Spain, before pointing the finger elsewhere in the aftermath of this comprehensive loss.Kylian Mbappe with his coach after the match (Reuters)For much of his tenure, Deschamps was deemed a dullard; maybe unfairly, given his sides have scored four and three in World Cup finals. In the end, and even as France barely threatened the Spanish goal, he may have perished by being too adventurous. The tournament began with an underlying question of whether he should bring in a third midfielder, sacrificing whichever of Desire Doue or Bradley Barcola started, for more solidity, and with the assumption he would do it at the business end of the competition. If ever there was a time to do it, it was against Spain’s pass masters. But Deschamps stuck with 4-2-