Zinédine Zidane and Didier Deschamps, a complicated bond shaped by parallel careers | OneFootball

Their intertwined paths have produced a relationship that has at times been fraught, and now, after 14 years in charge of France, Didier Deschamps is to be succeeded by Zinédine Zidane in the coming days, according to L'Équipe.

They have spent their careers following one another. Deschamps had been in the national team for five years when Zidane emerged in the summer of 1994. He had already spent two years at Juventus when Zidane arrived after Euro 1996.

They have often crossed paths and reconnected. The two men respect each other and share warm relations when they meet within the France 98 circle.

That cordiality has not precluded the unspoken tensions. For years, the alternative Zidane represented was perceived as a shadow, at times even a threat, by his former captain.

They appeared together at a France 98 event in 2023. The image was friendly, yet the occasional resentments have not always disappeared.

Source: L'Équipe