Mbappé Pushes for Deschamps' Legacy at World Cup
Kylian Mbappé is not ready to let Didier Deschamps go. Not to another bench, and certainly not to Italy.
France’s captain has never hidden his admiration for the man who handed him the keys to Les Bleus. Now, with Deschamps’ long reign heading toward its final chapter, Mbappé has moved beyond quiet respect. He is openly trying to shape his coach’s future.
Deschamps, as ever, plays it cool. The 55-year-old has refused to shut any doors, keeping every option on the table once his time with France ends — a return to club football, another national team, a new challenge entirely. He has said only that he is “not ruling anything out.”
Mbappé is trying to slam at least one of those doors shut.
Mbappé turns up the heat
Inside the France camp, Mbappé has made no secret of his stance. He wants Deschamps to walk away from the international stage on French terms, not turn up in the opposite dugout one day.
Speaking to M6, Mbappé framed the coming World Cup as the ultimate parting gift.
“The best way to pay tribute to him is to win because he loves to win,” he said. “We're going to make sure he has the best of the recent World Cups. Hopefully, it will be his last because I hope he doesn't play for another team.”
That last line was not a slip. It was a message. Asked about whether he was trying to sway Deschamps’ thinking, Mbappé was blunt: “I'm putting pressure on him.”
This is not a player quietly accepting the natural cycle of international football. This is a captain staking out his position on the legacy of the man who has led France through more than a decade of major tournaments.
The Italy question
If Deschamps does leave France, one destination keeps surfacing: Italy.
The links are logical. Deschamps has deep roots in Italian football, forged at Juventus both as a player and as a coach. His reputation as a stabiliser and serial winner fits neatly with an Azzurri setup still trying to claw its way back from a period of turmoil, including missing multiple World Cups.
On paper, it looks like a marriage of convenience. On the French side of the Alps, Mbappé sees something closer to a nightmare.
“They said Italy, that would be awful,” he said when asked directly about the prospect of Deschamps taking the Italian job.
No diplomacy. No softening. For Mbappé, the idea of his mentor leading a four-time world champion that could one day stand in France’s way is simply a step too far.
One last shot at the World Cup
All of that, though, sits just beyond the horizon. For now, the focus is brutally simple: win the World Cup and send Deschamps out at the peak.
France were a penalty kick or two from glory in 2022, falling agonisingly short in the final. That defeat still hangs over this group, sharpening their edge rather than dulling it. Deschamps’ impending departure only adds another layer of urgency.
The 2026 tournament will close his long tenure with Les Bleus. Before any decision on his next move, he has one more campaign to navigate, one more chance to turn a strong era into something truly historic.
The path begins with Senegal on June 16 in Group I. It is a tricky opener, the kind that can set the tone for an entire tournament. Iraq follow on June 22, then Norway four days later to close out the group stage.
Every match now doubles as a farewell performance. Every team talk, every tactical tweak, every celebration carries the weight of finality.
Mbappé wants that story to end with a trophy in Deschamps’ hands and a full stop on his international career. What comes after — whether a sabbatical, a club comeback, or that contentious Italian adventure — will have to wait.
First, France and their captain intend to make sure the last word in Deschamps’ blue chapter is written on the biggest stage of all.
