Didier Deschamps said it was not worth the risk to rush Kylian Mbappe back for Friday's 0-0 draw against the Netherlands just days after he suffered a broken nose.
Mbappe watched on from the bench as some wasteful finishing from Les Bleus meant they failed to guarantee their place in the last 16 of Euro 2024 with a game to spare.
Deschamps conceded his decision may have been different for a knockout match, but is hopeful Mbappe can return for Tuesday's final group game against Poland.
"With each day he's getting better and if it had been a decisive game this evening, I would have thought twice about him playing or not," said Deschamps.
"We are getting to a point that is better for him. After what happened, I thought the wiser decision was to keep him on the bench."
Antoine Griezmann was guilty of missing the best of France's chances as Deschamps' men have only one own goal to show from two matches so far in Germany.
However, they remain well on course for the next round with four points from their opening two games.
Aurelien Tchouameni replaced Mbappe in the only change from Monday's 1-0 win over Austria as Deschamps sought the security of an extra midfielder.
But he said his only regret was not seeing France take one of their chances.
"I always try to take the right choice so we have the most balance in the team as possible," added Deschamps.
"The only regret I have is that we weren’t efficient enough. We had five or six chances to score."
The Netherlands did have the ball in the net late on but Xavi Simons' goal was controversially ruled out
After a lengthy delay for a VAR check, Denzel Dumfries was adjudged to be interfering with goalkeeper Mike Maignan's ability to stop the shot from an offside position.
Dutch boss Ronald Koeman claimed the goal should have stood, but Deschamps disagreed.
"I was taken aback with how long it took because when I saw the screen it was a no-brainer."