Zinedine Zidane teases long-awaited managerial return 'soon' amid links to France job

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Evening Standard

·12 novembre 2025

Zinedine Zidane teases long-awaited managerial return 'soon' amid links to France job

Didier Deschamps’ days with Les Bleus are numbered

Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has hinted that he is looking for a new managerial post after four years out of work amid reports he could be lined up as successor to Didier Deschamps.

Vidéos OneFootball

The France legend, who scored 31 goals for Les Bleus in 108 appearances, has been linked with a wide variety of managerial posts since calling time on his second spell with Los Blancos in 2021, including openings at Manchester United, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, but has shied away from returning to the dugout.

He has now suggested, though, that he is prepared to make a comeback. Speaking at a charity football match this week, the injured Zidane said that he was disappointed not to be able to play, but that he was not unhappy to be on the sidelines.

"Unfortunately, I would have liked to (play the charity match), but we are not getting any younger,” he chuckled. “We have our age and unfortunately, from time to time we get hurt.

"I'm going to be a bit of a coach here.”

Asked whether a permanent return to the sidelines was on the horizon, he grinned: “Soon, too.”

Speaking in October, Zidane set his sights on the France job, and after being linked with so many openings in recent years, he is now widely considered the leading candidate to succeed Deschamps.

Deschamps’ contract ends following the 2026 World Cup, and he is not expected to renew his terms.

Zidane, himself a World Cup winner with France, would have big shoes to fill should he step into the role after Deschamps steered Les Bleus to World Cup glory in 2018 and a second-placed finish in Qatar in 2022.