India, May 25 -- Didier Deschamps was in the stands at Parc des Princes on May 7 watching Luis Enrique's Paris St-Germain (PSG) beat Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final. Hansi Flick's Barcelona came close to doing that in a season where they have regained La Liga and beaten Real Madrid four times.

Deschamps, Enrique and Flick were with national teams in the last World Cup. Two-and-a-half years later, only the Frenchman remains in his position. "Among elite teams, he is possibly the best example of what a national team head coach needs to be," said Stephen Constantine, the peripatetic head coach who was twice in charge of India and is now with Pakistan.

But Germany's Flick and Spaniard Enrique have revived their careers at clubs. ...