Zidane impresses his players at first training session at Clairefontaine

Zinédine Zidane began his era as head of the France national team on Monday at Clairefontaine, and it is safe to say that the new manager has lost none of his touch. During this first session on the Michel-Platini pitch, the 1998 World Cup winner was enough to impress his own players.

The 23 France internationals called up for the start of the Ligue des Nations arrived at the Château in the afternoon, with young Estéban Lepaul leading the way. The traditional arrival parade unfolded in a format largely unchanged from the Deschamps era, despite some adjustments made by the new coaching staff.

Around 6 p.m., ten outfield players took to the pitch for an opening drill: Andy Diouf, Eduardo Camavinga, Michael Olise, Jules Koundé, Maxence Lacroix, Manu Koné, Maghnes Akliouche, Dayot Upamecano, Estéban Lepaul and Lucas Da Cunha. The 5-on-5 setup mathematically left no room for Zidane in the game, but the manager took part in a shooting drill at the end of the session, serving his players himself.

As he did at Real Madrid, where he enjoyed mixing with his players to demonstrate technique that has remained almost intact, “ZZ” offered a striking glimpse of what his level once was. Dayot Upamecano made no attempt to hide his admiration as he left the session. “We did technical work, we saw he still has it,” he acknowledged. “It will be difficult to reproduce what Zidane is capable of doing technically. (Laughs) We are very happy with the training that just finished. We are eager to see what comes next.”

A successful start for a manager whose natural authority, on and off the ball, already seems to have won over the entire group.