Zidane is in France, Klopp is in Germany. 6 coaching substitutions in the national teams after the World Cup

After the World Cup, there were high-profile coaching changes in some national teams. Zinedine Zidane led his native French team, which finished in fourth place. Jurgen Klopp resumed his coaching career for the sake of the failed German national team. The Uruguayans will be mentored by their legendary player Diego Forlan. What changes are taking place in the teams that played at the World Cup is in the Izvestia article.

The French national team — Zinedine Zidane

• Regardless of how the World Cup would have ended for the French national team, a new era awaited the team with its completion. Head coach Didier Deschamps, who led her to victory in 2018 and second place in 2022, announced his retirement from this post in advance. And the way the North American tournament started, he had every chance of finishing on a winning note. France performed the best in the group stage, scoring three wins with a difference of eight goals scored and conceded. She also defeated the main opening of the World Cup, the Norwegian national team, although Deschamps was absent from the coaching bridge in this match — he urgently flew to France for his mother's funeral.

• In the playoffs, the French, led by Deschamps, continued to confirm the title of favorites. They are the only ones who have gone through three rounds without conceding a single goal. Deschamps went down in history as the first coach to win 20 matches at the World Cups, and the main star of his national team, Kylian Mbappe, scored so much that he became the top scorer in the history of the tournament (22 goals at the World Cups). But the French national team failed the crucial stages. She lost in the semifinals to Spain, unable to adjust tactically to her, and then lost to England in the bronze medal match with a score of 4:6, conceding four goals in the first half.

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• Zinedine Zidane will prepare the French national team for the next World Cup. After Laurent Blanc and Deschamps, he became the third consecutive coach of the team, who had already won the World Cup as a player. He has long said that he would like to lead his native team, but it was impossible while Deschamps was showing brilliant results with it. Perhaps this is why Zidane has refused to accept any offers for the last five years. His track record so far includes only Real Madrid, which he led with a break from 2016 to 2021. It was one of the most successful periods in history for the Spanish club, with three Champions League wins, so Zidane will be expected to deliver equally impressive results at the head of the French national team.

Germany national team — Jurgen Klopp

• The World Cup was another setback for the German national team. Since the end of the 15-year era of Joachim Loew, crowned with victory at the 2014 World Cup, the Germans have not only not won medals at national team tournaments, but were not even close to them. Despite the fact that the country has the most powerful football school and supplies top-class players to the best clubs, it was not possible to find a coach for the national team who would unite them into a single team.

• Julian Nagelsmann, who has led the German national team since 2023, did not turn out to be such a specialist. After being fired from Bayern, he failed to make it past the quarterfinals at the home of Euro 2024 and finished fourth in the following season's Nations League. At the World Cup, the Germans got an easy group with unsophisticated opponents and won it, winning two out of three matches, after which disaster awaited them in the 1/16 finals match with Paraguay. Germany failed to beat him after extra time and lost in a penalty shootout for the first time in its history. For the third time in a row, the German national team did not reach the 1/8 finals of the World Cup.

• Nagelsman, having a valid contract until 2028, was fired before the end of the World Cup. Three weeks later, Jurgen Klopp took his place, which was a pleasant surprise for the fans. His last job was at Liverpool, which he not only led to all possible club titles, but also delivered a vibrant attacking football. When Klopp announced his retirement from coaching in 2024, fans saw it as a tragedy. However, he soon began to hint that he was ready to return to the coaching bench, and therefore he was expected in the best clubs in Europe. However, at a difficult moment for the German national team, he chose her, earning the respect of fans all over the world.

Uruguay national team — Diego Forlan

• Another unexpected substitution on the coaching bridge was made by the national team of Uruguay. She was trained for the World Cup by Marcelo Bielsa, known for his ability to squeeze the most out of teams without notable stars. The national team's fans dreamed that it would surpass the success of 2010, when it reached the fourth place of the World Cup, and team leader Diego Forlan won the Golden Ball of the tournament.

• However, Uruguay failed to win a single World Cup match for the first time in 24 years, drawing with Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde and losing to Spain. South Americans became one of the disappointments of the tournament, and many agreed that it was precisely a coaching failure. Bielsa did not maintain the atmosphere in the team and clashed with the players, and after the team's departure, he took responsibility for this and resigned.

• Forlan, beloved by the Uruguayan fans, came to replace Bielsa. So far, he has settled in on a temporary basis until March 2027, which can be explained by the very modest coaching experience of the former player. He had only two attempts to prove himself in Uruguayan clubs, and both of them lasted less than a year without any success. After 2021, Forlan became better known as a tennis player due to his performances at veteran tournaments, but now he will try to prove himself in football again.

Croatia national team — Slaven Bilic

• The Croatian national team has also drawn a line under its most successful period in history. The World Cup was the last test for Zlatko Dalic, who has led the team since 2017. He twice led the Balkan national team to sensational medals at the world championships: silver in 2018 and bronze in 2022. Dalic was again bringing a team to North America that could be expected a lot, especially after a great qualifying round in which the Croats drew once and won the rest of the matches.

• The Croats passed the group stage of the World Cup with dignity, losing in their quartet only to the future bronze medalists from England. But the playoffs ended for them after the first meeting. In the match with Portugal, Croatia lost with a score of 1:2. This game once again raised the question of the effectiveness of the VAR system, which robbed Dalic's players of one goal in extra time. The early departure meant that they did not sign a new contract with the coach.

• Slaven Bilic replaced Dalic. The former coach of the Moscow "Locomotive" again led the Croatian national team, with whom he had already worked from 2006 to 2012, after which he came to the attention of the "railwaymen". Bilic has not held coaching positions since 2024, when he terminated his contract with Saudi Al-Fateh by mutual consent. His appointment also came as a surprise, the outcome of which is still impossible to predict.

Belgium national team — Marc van Bommel

• The Belgian national team at the World Cup was one of those for whom the fans felt the most sympathy. Rudy Garcia's team, which urgently accepted her in January 2025, began the tournament with two draws with Egypt and Iran, and eventually became the winner of the group thanks to the defeat of New Zealand. At the start of the playoffs, Belgium miraculously beat Senegal, to which they lost two goals by the 86th minute, and then passed the USA, which included the scandalously restored forward Folarin Balogun.

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• In the quarterfinals, Belgium faced Spain, and against the future champions, Garcia's team held their own until the middle of the second half. At that moment, Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, one of the best goalkeepers in the world, was slightly injured. Although he was ready to play, only avoiding long passes, Garcia decided to replace him with a young Vincent Mannart. As a result, it was his mistake in the 88th minute that led to the winning goal of the Spaniards.

• Although this was only Belgium's second defeat in 20 matches under Garcia, they did not renew his contract after his departure from the World Cup. The quarterfinalists of the tournament were led by Dutchman Mark van Bommel. In the past, he was a foundation player for Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Milan, and reached the World Cup finals with the Netherlands national team. As a coach, van Bommel achieved success only in the Belgian Antwerp, which allowed him to be promoted to the national team.

Portugal national team — Jorge Jesus

• The Portuguese national team has made perhaps the most strategically unusual coaching change since the World Cup. The team from the Iberian Peninsula performed at the tournament at its usual level, passing the group stage and stopping in the middle of the playoffs. Cristiano Ronaldo and his compatriots lost only to the Spanish national team, which he beat on penalties in the tense final of the League of Nations a year ago.

• After that, the Spanish specialist Roberto Martinez left the Portuguese national team. The legend of the Portuguese coaching school, Jorge Jesus, was quickly invited to replace him. The reason why the 71-year-old coach was called to the national team may lie not so much in his vast experience as in his special relationship with Ronaldo.

• Jesus led the Al-Nasr striker's club last season and led it to victory in the Saudi Arabian championship. This is the moment Ronaldo has been waiting for since 2022, when he took a sharp turn in his career and left Europe. Now fans are wondering if Jesus will be able to keep 41-year-old Ronaldo in the national team until the home World Cup in 2030. After all, if the striker succumbs to the coach's persuasions and continues to perform, he will provide both the tournament and the Portuguese national team with a huge audience interest.