Zinédine Zidane has secured three victories and one draw in his opening four matches as manager of the France national football team, mounting a strong start in the Nations League that outpaces several notable managerial predecessors, according to reports from La Croix and Le 10 Sport.
The former Real Madrid boss took charge in 2026, inheriting a squad with high expectations for tactical renewal. His early campaign featured victories away against Turkey (0-1) and Belgium (1-0), followed by a 1-1 draw against Italy and a 4-1 return-fixture victory over the Belgians on Monday, October 5, as detailed by La Croix.
How Zinédine Zidane Compares to Past France Managers
Zidane’s record of three wins and a draw puts him in rare company among France managers through their first four games, though he falls just short of the four-match winning streak recorded by Aimé Jacquet in 1993. According to statistics highlighted by Le 10 Sport via StatsDuFoot, only Henri Guérin in 1964, Henri Michel in 1984, and Aimé Jacquet previously won their opening two fixtures on the French bench.
By comparison, Didier Deschamps opened his tenure in August 2012 with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay, followed by a World Cup qualifying win against Finland (1-0), a win over Belarus, and a friendly defeat to Japan. Laurent Blanc began in July 2010 with defeats against Norway and Belarus before stabilizing the squad. Raymond Domenech recorded one victory and three draws in 2004, while Jacques Santini posted three wins and a draw in 2002, and Roger Lemerre managed two wins and two draws after taking over in 1998.
Tactical Shifts and Squad Renewal Under the New Boss
While Zidane has not entirely overhauled the setup, his initial selections introduced new faces such as Adrien Truffert, Lucas Da Cunha, and Esteban Lepaul, according to La Croix. The tactical approach emphasizes possession and dictating the tempo, a philosophy Zidane stressed after the victory in Belgium.
We are very satisfied,
Zidane stated, as reported by Le 10 Sport. We haven’t had many training sessions, we’ve traveled, we have to rest now. But it’s only a step. We are trying to put things in place, possession, running with the ball and not behind it, because we French don’t like that, even if we know how to do it too. With quality players like this, you have to make the ball live, I insist on this message, to put movement and rhythm. I felt my team was capable of doing this kind of match.
Data from OptaJean cited by Le 10 Sport indicated that France completed 92.8% of their passes in the opponent’s half during the match in Belgium, marking the highest passing accuracy in a match in the opposition half for Les Bleus in twenty years.
Upcoming Fixtures in the Nations League
With six points secured from the opening block of matches, Zidane’s squad prepares to return to the Stade de France. The upcoming schedule features a match against Italy on Friday, followed by another encounter with Belgium on the following Monday, as reported by Le 10 Sport.
I’m not going to say we’re longing for it. I first want my players to rest, to recover little by little,
Zidane said regarding the upcoming matches. We will be happy to find our public on Friday, with these six points. It will be another match, complicated and difficult against Italy who won tonight (4-1 in Turkey).
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