Zinedine Zidane talks up 'logical' prospect of becoming France manager

• Zidane opened up about his future
• Believes he will take charge of France
• Reflected on his time in Madrid

WHAT HAPPENED? The 1998 World Cup winner has often been mentioned as the leading candidate to succeed current French national team manager Didier Deschamps. After Les Bleus' 2022 World Cup final defeat against Argentina, it was speculated that Zidane would be drafted in, but those rumours were soon doused as Deschamps' contract was renewed until June 2026. The 50-year-old manager has not ruled out the possibility of taking charge of Les Bleus in the future but insists that "now is not the time" for him to take the reins.

WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to GQ magazine, Zidane said: "I've often said that when you know the France team as a player and you become a coach, it's just logical to think about it. But now is not the time. When I was in Cannes, I wanted to go to Bordeaux. Then I wanted to play at Juve and then Madrid because it was a different and stronger experience each time. We just call it ambition. I have always been ambitious and I have always believed in myself. I rush."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: After an extremely successful first stint with Real Madrid, where he won the Champions League on three successive occasions, Zidane returned to the Santiago Bernabeu dugout when Los Blancos were in turmoil in 2019. He says that he picks his assignments on instinct rather than the risk factor involved in the job.

“I don't prepare things in general, I do what I feel," he added. "As for my first stop in Madrid. I had done two and a half years 'a tope' (thoroughly) as we say in Spanish. We had won a lot of things and I really needed to breathe. And then eight months later, after an interval that had been beneficial to me on a personal level, the president called me and I plunged back in immediately. I could have said to myself: 'I did what I did. Why put me back in there? Why take this risk of doing less well?' But I don't calculate all that, I do it instinctively."

IN TWO PHOTOS:

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WHAT NEXT? Zidane was once again reportedly approached by Paris Saint-Germain to replace Christophe Galtier, but the French legend turned down their offer.