A nod to Zidane, a bow to Deschamps
Randal Kolo Muani picked his moment, and his words. Speaking to Tuttosport on Tuesday, the 27-year-old striker addressed Zinedine Zidane’s arrival at the head of Les Bleus for the first time.
“It is an honour that Zidane was chosen,” he said. Then came the part that mattered more. Kolo Muani refused to let his old boss slip out of the frame. “We can’t forget the work Deschamps did. He believed in me first.” Deschamps handed him his France debut. He has not forgotten it.
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Turin comes before everything
He watched the 2026 World Cup from the outside. No minutes, no squad. That kind of summer stays with a player. Getting back into the France set-up now means outrunning a crowded, ruthless attacking group, and he knows it.
So the message is blunt. “Right now my head is at Juve, I’m trying to put the ball in the net.” Club form first. The blue shirt can wait until the goals come back.
The idol he once copied in the schoolyard
There is a strange symmetry to all this. Ask Kolo Muani who he looked up to as a kid and Zidane’s name lands right next to Thierry Henry and Ronaldo. “The ones who made kids’ eyes go wide,” he said. Lining up one day for a manager he once mimicked in the playground would close a loop most players only dream about. The catch is obvious. He has to get back in the squad first.
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