And in the end, it’s (again) Deschamps who wins

“I’m realistic, it’s been twelve years (…) Some people are tired of seeing my face…” No need to be a great cleric to understand the end of Didier Deschamps' sentence, pronounced Sunday evening on the channel the Teamafter the authoritarian victory against Italy (1-3). The boss of the Blues, for the last evening of his team's calendar year, could not dream of a better ending. “It’s always a good thing to end November with a victory”he underlined with a smile and a certain jubilation in front of the media at San Siro.

If he repeats to anyone who will listen that he does not read or listen to anything during international sequences – he is informed in the event of major controversies – Deschamps is well aware of being the target of criticism, particularly since the Euro and a successful competition in terms of results but more than boring in terms of the game.

Since this summer in Germany, the 56-year-old Basque has experienced periods of turbulence with serenity and confidence.