In an interview with Ouest-France, Noël Le Graët confided that he would like to see Zinedine Zidane become coach of the France team in the future, almost two years after having roughly dismissed this idea.
The big return of Noël Le Graët in the media. After L'Équipe, the former president of the French Football Federation (FFF) spoke in Ouest-France to welcome the dismissal of the investigation for “moral and sexual harassment” opened in January 2023. And he does not hesitate to settle a few scores, nor to give his corrosive opinion on the next FFF election, in particular. The former leader also returned to his comments about Zinédine Zidane which had sparked controversy, made on January 8, 2023 on RMC.
“It wasn’t against Zidane”
At the time, Le Graët had just extended Didier Deschamps' contract for four more years (until 2026), a few days after the defeat in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina (3-3, 4 tab 2). Guest of the show Bartoli Timehe had been questioned about his choice not to appoint Zinedine Zidane, roughly brushing aside this possibility and the fear of heartbreak at the idea, for example, of seeing him lead another selection. “Zidane in Brazil? I don't care, he can go wherever he wants,” he said. “He can go wherever he wants, in a club… selection, I hardly believe it as far as he is concerned. If Zidane tried to contact me? Certainly not, I wouldn't even have taken him on the phone. To tell him to look for another club? Make a special broadcast for him to find a club or a selection.”
A little less than two years later, he returned to this episode and assured that he would like to see Zizou on the Blues bench in the future. “I had just extended Didier Deschamps,” he recalls. “In my opinion, 90% of managers would have done the same thing. Many journalists were waiting for Zidane. The first journalist who calls me, I am more or less friendly. The second, a little less. Then the third, I But it wasn't against Zidane, who I would like to see as coach one day. I was surprised that so-called specialists, who have never managed a club, would play the Zidane card, probably because they do. had some tired of writing about Didier and saying that he plays badly Today, France is second in the FIFA rankings.
Le Graët concludes by ensuring that he always communicates with Didier Deschamps. “Yes, I got it yesterday (Monday),” he confides. “Obviously, he was very happy with the decision that just came out. I kept a lot of friends. But when you are at the head of a federation, you are not unanimous, which I can understand. “
