Zinedine Zidane has officially taken over as the French national team manager years after Real Madrid fans were hoping he would take the job in 2022, and he enters the gig getting to work with the player he always dreamed of coaching, Kylian Mbappe, and an attack studded with stars around KM10.
He does so as both the biggest legend in the history of the French national team and a three peat Champions League winner with Real Madrid who both took the Merengues at their best and achieved everything year after year and then, two years later, saved Real from their worst to set the table for two more Champions League titles for the manager after him.
For years, Real Madrid fans had to hear as the world criticized Zinedine Zidane or were skeptical of his achievements as coach, with the United Kingdom and United States media, in particular, dismissing Zizou as nothing more than a cheerleader. But the years have made the world see how difficult his accomplishments were, and back in France, his contemporary players and managers have a reverence for him perhaps even exceeding that of the Madridistas in the 2010s and 2020s.
Zinedine Zidane wants to score big
Take, for example, what his former teammate and French national team striking hero David Trezeguet, both a friend of Zizou's in France and in Turin, had to say about the iconic midfielder. Trezeguet, in hearing Zidane talk about a focus on attacking ruthlesness and identity, reminded fans around the world that Zinedine Zidane has always been a coach to impose himself and focus on scoring goals.
Trezeguet told RMC Sport, via Actu Foot, "Zidane's first speech clearly goes in the direction of an ambitious team offensively. Zizou has always had this offensive culture. As a player, then at Real Madrid, he evolved in an environment where attack is a priority. And as a coach, his teams have always had this willingness to go forward. With the offensive potential that the French team has today, he'll definitely want to see the Bleus express themselves more in attack.But he's also smart enough to know that in international play, you win with balance: you have to attack when needed, but also know how to defend together."
Real Madrid fans saw a very pragmatic Zidane at the club, especially in his second stint when he focused a lot of on solidity and defensive work, which did frustrate some fans. But he had to do so becaues he had no attacking options besides Karim Benzema with Rodrygo Goes and VInicius Junior still developing while Isco, James Rodriguez, and Gareth Bale were declining off a cliff.
David Trezezguet gets the balance with Zidane correct 100 percent. He knows Zizou can be pragmatic and coach to win, but he also knows that the French manager, at his heart, wants to score goals and dominate teams the way those 2010s Madrid sides did, even in a way Madridistas did not fully appreciate until now that he is gone.
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