FFF president Noel Le Graet responds to question on whether Zidane will be his first choice to replace Deschamps as France head coach
Zinedine Zidane has emerged as a candidate to replace his former teammate Didier Deschamps as the France national team manager. Deschamps has been in charge of Les Bleus since 2012.
The 1998 FIFA World Cup winning team's captain has led his country to World Cup glory in 2018 and to the final in 2022 as the manager. However, Deschamps' future remains uncertain and FFF president Noel Le Graet has now shared his take on the situation. He addressed claims about Zidane being Deschamps' successor.
Speaking to Ouest France, the FFF president said:
"I didn't think about the fact that Didier could leave. Some journalists want that to change, but I am not at all influenced by this sort of thing. Didier did his job well, he has priority, and I think we will agree."
Le Graet further added that he could be open to keeping Deschamps until the 2030 FIFA World Cup. He said:
"Why not 2030? We are already going to spend some time together to talk a bit about what happened in Qatar and its desires, how we are already considering the 2024 European Championship."
Christopher Nkunku
Presnel Kimpembé
Lucas Hernandez
Karim Benzema
Mike Maignan
N’Golo Kanté
Paul Pogba
All of them not available, Ballon d’Or winner included…
…but Didier Deschamps’ France reach again the World Cup final after Russia 2018.
#Qatar2022 🏆🇫🇷 https://t.co/7tvvOezYRr
Speaking about when he wants to seal Didier Deschamps' future as the France manager, Le Graet said:
"Of course I have to talk to some members of the Comex about it, but in my opinion we will settle this at Guingamp. If he doesn't want to stay, it will be very short. If he wants to stay, there will be somewhat longer discussions. If we can wrap this up before the end of the year, if possible."
FFF president Noel La Graet spoke about Didier Deschamps' role in evolving France
Since taking over in 2012, Didier Deschamps has managed to overturn a struggling France squad to superpowers in world football. Speaking about the evolution, Le Graet said:
"Didier has already made this group evolve a lot. There were only nine players left in 2018 in Qatar, and when you see the young people returning and playing in big European clubs, you say to yourself that the reservoir is important."
"The hopefuls no longer lose a match too, our results in the youth teams are good. This French team will still grow by 2024, and I think what they have just done has been remarkable. The French have also shown a great attachment to the Blues."
Didier Deschamps keeps all options open for his future: “I have a meeting with the FA president at the beginning of the year. I will discuss with him”. 🇫🇷 #Qatar2022
“I would have said the same if we had won, it takes time”. https://t.co/0wtsMiBvPq