Zinédine Zidane has had a flawless performance since taking over the reins of the France team. A first press conference filled with emotion, a first list deemed exciting by the majority of supporters, first justifications full of common sense. And this has continued since the start of the gathering in Clairefontaine, where his happiness shines through in every image. As well as his proximity to the supporters who came to see him at work.
All that remains is the main question: how will the France team play under Zizou? He gave the first elements of an answer during his press conference, and the first adjustments perceived during training clearly show a first possible composition in 4-3-3. Similar to what he proposed to Real Madrid, with a sentry and two midfielders placed a notch higher. Manu Koné and Lucas Da Cunha were tested at the sentry post. And the composition of the midfield could take a really offensive turn with the identity of the two torchbearers.
Reposition the offensive trio
Adrien Rabiot could thus play left central midfielder, his preferred position. And as we could see during the presentation of the list, Zidane voluntarily included Cherki in the “midfielder” category, which could offer the position of 3rd midfielder, the right central midfielder, to the Manchester City player. Which would be a daring and very playful choice. Ahead, the great revolution could above all concern Kylian Mbappé. More than the choice of the three players, it is their positioning that should evolve.
As announced at a press conference, Zidane appreciates Mbappé on the left side and seems willing to make room for him in this position. Even though Mbappé has evolved his game to take on the role of central attacker in recent years. This would leave him the possibility of installing Ousmane Dembélé in the center, like at PSG. And to shift Michael Olise to the right side, like at Bayern Munich. It is therefore on a tactical level that Zidane could shake up the habits inherited from the Didier Deschamps period.
