'We started shamefully!' - Adrien Rabiot calls out France team-mates for 'unacceptable behaviour' during chaotic defeat to England in World Cup third-place playoff

France's problems were exposed from the opening whistle as they fell 4-0 behind before the interval against England in Miami. Although Les Bleus improved after the break and found the net four times, they were unable to recover from a disastrous opening 45 minutes.

The disappointing performance sparked criticism from Rabiot, who questioned the attitude shown by some members of the squad. Tensions were also visible on the touchline, with Rayan Cherki involved in a heated exchange with Deschamps during a first-half drinks break.

Rabiot did not hide his frustration after the final whistle as he criticised France's first-half display and the behaviour of some of his team-mates.

"We started the first half quite shamefully," the AC Milan midfielder told beIN SPORTS. "I saw behaviour from some players that I'd never seen before. It's a bit disappointing because it was the last match to do well in this competition. There's a lot of disappointment after the loss against Spain, but there was work to be done until the very end and we can't just be content with sloppy play like that. We talked at halftime; we told ourselves we needed to show some pride, and it was much better in the second half because in the first half, some of the behavior was unacceptable."

Before the third-place play-off, Deschamps admitted neither side was particularly motivated by the fixture, saying: "England does want to play this game and neither do we." His prediction proved accurate as France produced a lifeless first-half display before eventually losing 6-4.

The defeat brought an underwhelming end to Deschamps' 14-year spell in charge. Internal tensions and a disjointed performance overshadowed his final match on the France bench, while England took full advantage to finish the tournament on a high with Declan Rice praising the strength of Thomas Tuchel's men.

"This is the best England group for a very long time," Rice said. "That's a fact. No one can take that away from us. I think we can be proud as a group. We are just gutted we lost in that semi-final."

France now turn their attention to life after Deschamps, with Zinedine Zidane widely expected to succeed the World Cup-winning coach. Restoring unity within the squad will be among the biggest tasks facing the former Real Madrid boss after a tournament that ended with public criticism from senior players. England, meanwhile, head home with a morale-boosting third-place finish after responding impressively to their semi-final disappointment.