Zidane feels 'immense emotion' ahead of debut as France coach
Zinedine Zidane will take charge of France for the first time against Turkey in the Nations League, and says he feels even greater excitement than on his debut as a player in 2009.1994 He takes over after Deschamps' departure with Mbappé as captain and six rookies called up.
== sync, corrected by elderman == @elder_man
The debut he's been waiting for over 30 years.
Zinedine Zidane will take charge of the French national team for the first time on Friday in their Nations League match against Turkey at Kocaeli Stadium, İzmit.
"I feel an immense emotion to be at the head of this French national team".
The dream came true after the World Cup, when he replaced Didier Deschamps his former teammate, who stayed 14 years in office, with the world title of 2018 and vice of 2022 on the resume.
From the goal of 1994 to throne in command
Zidane's career has always had spectacular beginnings: in 2006, he came on as a substitute against the Czech Republic and scored two goals. Then came league titles with Juventus and Real Madrid, the decisive volleyball goal in the Champions League final of 2007 [8] plus the two headed goals in the 3-0 victory over Brazil at the end of 2007, [9] the night his face was projected on the Arc de Triomphe and Ballon d'Or later that year.
As a coach, he has won three consecutive Champions League titles for Real Madrid.
I'm taking over as coach, so people are talking.
Calendar and skipper defined
After Turkey, France visits Belgium on Monday, hosts Italy on 2 October and takes on Belgium three days later with both matches at the Stade de France.
Kylian Mbappé, the greatest goalscorer in the history of the national team, will be captain against Turkey and is recovering from a minor injury. Zidane explained why the striker did not appear at the press conference who spoke was midfielder Adrien Rabiot:
"The obligation is to have a player and the coach.
Rabiot, along with Ousmane Dembélé and Jules Koundé is one of the vice-captains.
"His aura attracts a lot of attention, and in some ways it's good that the focus is more on the coach than the players.
Six new faces on the list
Zidane, 54, has called up six new players: striker Esteban Lepaul (Rennes), defenders Leny Yoro (Manchester United) and Jérémy Jacquet (Liverpool), midfielder Lucas Da Cunha (Como), Andy Diouf (Inter Milan) and Guillaume Restes (Toulouse).
"The French national team is open to everyone. We have a good group, some veterans, some newcomers", said the coach.
What is the present state of play?
The debut marks the beginning of a new cycle: an end to a 14-year era with Deschamps, the arrival of Zidane who says he's more interested in results than spotlights ("winning matches is what interests me most") and a four-game window that will show fans the first outline of this new France, starting on Friday in İzmit.
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