On September 18, Zidane will announce the players selected to begin his tenure with the French national team. The announcement is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. local time in France, during a press conference at the headquarters of the French Football Federation (FFF).
Zidane Has a Date for His First Major Decision With France
The wait is beginning to come to an end for Zinedine Zidane. The new France head coach is already working on building his project, and very soon he will face the first decision that will truly reveal the direction he wants to take Les Bleus: his first squad selection.
It will be much more than just another squad announcement. After years of speculation surrounding his potential arrival on the French bench, we will finally get the first clues about the team Zizou wants to build.
Zidane’s First Major Decision
Since officially beginning his tenure as head coach, Zidane has used his first few weeks to prepare everything surrounding his debut.
The coach has already visited Clairefontaine, where he worked on details for the upcoming training camp, and he has also started watching players in person. He recently attended the Trophée des Champions between Lens and Paris Saint-Germain at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis, one of his first public appearances at a match since taking the job.
Now comes the most interesting part.
The squad announcement will reveal how much Zidane intends to preserve from the structure he inherited and where he will begin putting his own stamp on the team.
Kylian Mbappé naturally stands out as one of the stars around whom this new France can be built, but there is enormous anticipation over which other players will have important roles from the start and whether there will be any new faces among those selected.
The coaching change also represents the definitive end of an era. Didier Deschamps had been in charge of France since 2012 and built one of the most successful periods in Les Bleus history, including winning the 2018 FIFA World Cup and reaching the final in 2022.
Zidane now inherits a national team accustomed to competing for absolutely everything.
Four Matches to Begin the Zidane Era
And he will have practically no time to experiment.
The first training camp will begin just days after the squad is announced and will feature an important change: the September and October international windows have been combined.
That means Zidane will have a longer period to work with his players, but he will also have four competitive matches to begin his project.
His debut will come on September 25 against Turkey, before facing Belgium three days later.
France will then play Italy on October 2 before meeting Belgium again on October 5.
All four matches are part of the opening stage of the UEFA Nations League, meaning Zidane will not have any friendlies to conduct his first experiments. Points will be on the line from his very first match.
The level of opposition will only increase the pressure. Turkey, Belgium and Italy will turn the new coach’s opening weeks into an immediate test for a national team that will continue to carry the expectation of competing among Europe’s best.
Zidane Reunites With Trusted Members of His Staff
The squad is not the only thing still to be revealed.
Before then, on September 15, the full coaching staff that will accompany Zidane during this new chapter is expected to be finalized.
Some of the names already provide an indication of how he intends to build his project.
Fabien Barthez, who won the World Cup with France alongside Zidane in 1998, will be responsible for working with the goalkeepers.
Two men who know the new head coach’s methods extremely well will also be involved: David Bettoni and Hamidou Msaidie.
Both worked alongside Zidane during his time at Real Madrid, meaning their arrival will allow the coach to bring some of the structure and working dynamics he used during his years with the Spanish giants.
Bettoni, in particular, was one of Zidane’s closest collaborators in Madrid during a historic era in which the club won three consecutive UEFA Champions League titles.
The First Look at Zidane’s France
The real intrigue on September 18 will be in the names.
So far, we know the coach, some members of his staff and his first opponents. What we still do not know is what his France will actually look like.
Will he keep most of Deschamps’ core intact? Will he immediately introduce new players? Will there be any major omissions? Which players does he consider essential to begin his project?
The first squad will begin answering those questions.
Zidane is already preparing the groundwork. He has visited Clairefontaine, started watching matches from his new position and is working on the organization of his first training camp.
Now comes the most important part.
On September 18, Zizou will have to make his choices.
And with that first squad, we will begin to discover how he intends to build the new France.
