France's Deschamps criticizes first-half display in Iraq friendly halted by storm

France coach Didier Deschamps said his team underperformed in the first half of a World Cup 2026 warm-up match against Iraq in Philadelphia, where play was suspended because of heavy rain and lightning. Speaking at halftime, Deschamps said he was dissatisfied with France's showing and that Iraq's decision to line up with a single striker, unlike in previous matches, had caught his French technical staff off guard. Deschamps said the unexpected tactical setup forced France to reassess its approach on the pitch during the interval and that changes to the lineup would be made for the second half. The first half ended with France leading 1-0 after Kylian Mbappé scored in the 14th minute. The match was halted because of severe weather around the stadium. No immediate update on a restart time was provided in the source reporting.