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Former French Football Federation (FFF) president Noel Le Graet recently expressed his regret over the fiery comments he made against Zinedine Zidane.
La Graet apologized for his comments by saying he spoke politely with the first two reporters but lost his cool when the third journalist enquired about the same. He said (in an interview with L'Equipe):
“I had just returned to Paris and it was the third journalist who was asking me about Zidane. I was amicable with the first two, but with the third, I don’t even know who it was [Le Graët was being interviewed by Wimbledon winner Marion Bartoli] it was on the phone, I lost it. It wasn’t smart, I could slap myself over it. I should have never said that. But I apologised straight away.”
The former FFF president was asked about Zinedine Zidane potentially taking over as manager of Brazil, to which he had said (at that time):
“Zinédine Zidane to Brazil? I don’t give a toss. He can go wherever he wants, to a club or to a national team. I don’t really care. Did he try to ring me? Definitely not. I wouldn’t have even picked up the phone for him.”
La Graet's comments were criticized by Kylian Mbappé and Minister for Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra. The former president made his remarks immediately after France Football extended the contract of Didier Deschamps, the current head coach of Les Bleus. Zidane was tipped to take over that role after the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Zinedine Zidane is still without a job post his Real Madrid stint
Zinedine Zidane has had two managerial stints, both with Real Madrid. He won the Champions League three-peat with Los Blancos in his first spell and was successful in the league across both spells.
Despite his silverware success as a manager with the club, Zidane left after citing differences in opinion with the club's hierarchy. He has been linked with various jobs since then, with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) being a serious option.
