Zinedine Zidane has promised continuity with a personal twist after being unveiled as France’s new head coach, insisting “there will be no rupture” with the work of predecessor Didier Deschamps.
The former Real Madrid manager was officially presented on Tuesday as the successor to Deschamps, who spent 14 years in charge of Les Bleus. Zidane, who returns to the national team for the first time since his playing days, made clear he will retain the winning culture installed by his former team-mate while bringing his own ideas.
“I have nothing negative to say about what has been done,” Zidane said at his first press conference as France coach. “We will do things differently, that’s for sure. Didier Deschamps, Laurent Blanc and Zinedine Zidane are three different coaches, and I will bring my own approach. But there will be no rupture. The aim is to do everything possible for the France team to keep winning. As for my playing philosophy and my ideas, we will have the opportunity to talk about that later.”
Zidane outlines influences and style
Zidane, who enjoyed glittering playing careers with Juventus and Real Madrid before winning major honours as a coach in Spain, hinted that his footballing education will strongly shape the next phase for the national side.
“I am driven by the game, I have a number 10,” he said, referring to his old role on the pitch. “What drives me is going to score goals. Of course, you need balance in the team. I lived for 25 years in Spain, so you know what that means. I started in France, I am a number 10, I was a leader on the pitch and I want to become a leader through my experience. You will see my style gradually. We will see each other again very soon.”
The 1998 World Cup winner stressed that his attacking instincts will be tempered by the need for structure, suggesting an evolution rather than a break with the pragmatic but successful approach associated with Deschamps.
While he declined to go into tactical detail, Zidane repeatedly underlined that his long stay in Spain – and the emphasis there on possession, technique and offensive play – will influence how his France team operates.
Focus quickly turns to first fixtures
Zidane also looked ahead to his opening matches in charge, acknowledging that his tenure will begin with an immediate test away from home.
“My first match is Turkey, in Turkey,” he said. “We will have four matches in September. I will have three weeks with the players, it’s unprecedented. It’s great to be with the players and to prepare something.”
Those extended preparations, he suggested, will be crucial in allowing him to establish his methods with a group largely accustomed to Deschamps’ voice and structure over more than a decade.
The former France captain made it clear he is eager to meet his squad and start working on the pitch, describing the upcoming September window as an opportunity to lay foundations rather than overhaul what has already been built.
Zidane’s appointment marks a new chapter for a national team that has reached three of the last four major finals under Deschamps. In taking over from a coach who delivered the 2018 World Cup and 2021 Nations League titles, as well as the 2022 World Cup final and Euro 2016 final, Zidane inherits both a successful framework and considerable expectations.
For now, he is positioning himself as the continuity candidate with a distinct personality: respectful of the past decade’s achievements, but determined that his own experience – both as a creative midfielder and as a serial winner on the Real Madrid bench – will gradually put its stamp on Les Bleus.
