Little money and lots of applause! Everyone crazy about Zinedine Zidane at France

Perfect start on the “Roosters’” bench: rotation, spectacle and zero goals conceded against Turkey and Belgium. To take charge of the national team, “Zizu” accepted the basic salary, like Deschamps.

For the moment it really looks like a masterstroke. Two matches, two wins, spectacular play even while changing the line-up, even without Mbappé and without conceding a goal. More could not have been asked of Zinedine Zidane’s debut. Something all of France was waiting for, which has seen him as a footballing deity for almost 30 years. He did everything to take charge of France, even turning down multi-million contracts. The French federation gives the coach only 3.6 million euros a season, not counting bonuses.

Ahead of the challenge with Mancini’s Italy, the win over Belgium with a team of substitutes in theory, decided by a goal from the irreplaceable Olise, has amazed the French media. It is early for criticism, which for Deschamps has never been lacking, not even in 2012 when he took on the difficult task of rebuilding the national team.

Zidane is being treated with great respect. He has taken charge of a team filled with talent. The players he wants, as he has repeated for days, convinced he can do great things, regardless of schemes or formation.

Between the debut in Turkey and the match in Brussels, Zidane has changed 9 elements, but maintaining a high-quality level of play. The coach got an 8 in “L’Équipe’s” ratings table: “His team has personality and a pleasing style of play”.

A team “beautiful to watch” – is the front-page headline of the capital’s daily “Le Parisien”. Everyone is crazy about the images of Zidane running to celebrate Olise’s goal, shouting as if he had scored it himself. The gesture of the ball kicked by the coach at that moment immediately went viral.

The romance is completed by the revelations about Zidane’s salary. “L’Équipe” explains he had no big demands. He came from 5 years without activity, but also from the trophies won with Real Madrid, which made him a legend after 3 Champions Leagues in a row. The coach was content with the basic salary Deschamps had: 300,000 euros a month.

Zidane has given up image rights contracts, which would have guaranteed him 44,000 euros per match. Partly by his own choice and partly by obligation, since he would be “lending” his portrait to sponsors that are in competition with his own. As compensation, the Frenchman can add to his income with bonuses linked to appearances in major tournaments, with the aim of winning them, doing better than Deschamps. Starting with the European Championship, which escaped his predecessor three times and which takes place in two years’ time.