Zidane and the phone call before the squad: Why Tchouaméni was omitted from France's national team?

The phone rang late one evening in Madrid. On the other end was Zinedine Zidane – the new head coach of France – who had just finalized his first squad list of his new reign. Before L'Équipe could print the shocking lines, before forums could erupt with debates, the French manager proactively called Aurélien Tchouaméni. The conversation was brief: are you physically fit enough to feature in this international break? Tchouaméni answered honestly. He was not ready. An exclusive report is only the tip of the iceberg; beneath the surface lie midnight phone calls. That is a lesson I learned during five years following the pulse of English football, and now, as I cross into France to observe the power transition of the blue-shirted national team, I realize that principle remains intact. A decision that seems simple on the surface – omitting a Real Madrid star from the squad – actually contains layers of information no headline can fully capture. The context begins in the summer of 2026, when the French Football Federation (FFF) officially appointed Zidane to replace Didier Deschamps after more than a decade. Pressure weighs heavily on the strategist who won three consecutive Champions League titles with Real Madrid: how to maintain his predecessor's tactical foundation while imprinting his own mark strongly enough to win back fans' trust? That first squad list is thus a manifesto. It reveals Zidane's philosophy of player selection, how he views player value, and more importantly – how he defines performance not merely by reputation but by actual data. When Tchouaméni's name didn't appear on the list, many fans asked: why would a midfield mainstay of Real Madrid, who contributed greatly to last season's La Liga title triumph, be left out in the very first gathering of the Zidane era? The answer lies in the numbers cited by the France head coach himself during the press conference. Tchouaméni had been absent for two months due to an adductor injury – a persistent injury type that often recurs if a player returns too early. Since recovering, he had only 120 minutes of play and just one start for Real Madrid. Those numbers are not mere statistics – they tell the story of a body not yet ready, a match rhythm not yet established, and an underlying risk that any coach experienced in managing athletes fully understands. Zidane did not hesitate to state it openly. "He was out for two months, has played 120 minutes and started one match," the French coach told the press. "I think it's best for him to stay in Madrid and continue his training in order to recover fully." In other words, this is not a punishment, not a political message, not a signal of professional exclusion. This is a decision based on actual physical assessment – a lesson I have witnessed many times in my reporting career. The rhythm of a season does not lie in goals, but in each repeating Saturday. That statement has never been more true than in Tchouaméni's situation. A player may be a star from last season, may be the backbone of the national team, but if the body hasn't been fed enough match rhythm, all technical skills become meaningless against the intensity of an international match. Top-level football has no mercy for those who arrive without a solid physical foundation – especially with a World Cup fast approaching. I remember a March afternoon in 2026, when I was following the U18 Manchester United matches at Carrington. A young player – I will not name him – scored the season's most beautiful goal but was then left out of the next match because the coach felt he was not in optimal physical shape. The public reaction was harsh, accusing the coach of being overly strict. But two weeks later, that same player admitted he had felt exhausted and needed rest. The coach's decision turned out to be protection, not punishment. Zidane is doing the same with Tchouaméni. But there is a deeper layer that mainstream media has not fully explored: France's current midfield structure is deep enough to afford this decision. If Tchouaméni were an irreplaceable cog, Zidane would almost certainly have accepted the physical risk to call him up. But with a midfield featuring experienced and young names in excellent form, France can afford to "hold back" a star who is not ready. This is a luxury of squad depth few national teams in the world possess. France possesses one of the most talented generations in the country's football history. From defense to attack, from goalposts to the bench, squad depth is what makes opponents fear them. Being able to casually omit a Real Madrid midfielder from the squad without weakening the team at all is a quiet statement of France's number-one status in European football. However, there is a counter-intuitive angle that I believe readers should note. Many will hastily conclude that Tchouaméni is "losing value" in the new coach's eyes, or that the relationship between him and Zidane is not good. In reality, this decision could be a sign of the opposite: a long-term concern, a sustainable management approach that only far-sighted coaches implement. Zidane understands that a healthy Tchouaméni at the 2026 World Cup is worth many times more than a tired, reinjury-prone Tchouaméni in October friendlies. Put yourself in Zidane's shoes. He just took office, just announced his first squad. If he called up Tchouaméni and the player got injured in a national team training session, public opinion would condemn him for poor risk management. Conversely, if he omitted him, people would question fairness and selection standards. In that dilemma, Zidane chose the most transparent path: publishing specific data, explaining the reasoning clearly, and directly calling the player before information reached the public. This is a media management lesson any coach should learn. An exclusive report is only the tip of the iceberg; beneath the surface lie midnight phone calls. Zidane's handling of this affair shows he understands the power of proactive communication – a skill he honed during years managing Real Madrid, where every decision was scrutinized under the media microscope. That is why the situation unfolded so smoothly: no scandal, no angry statements from the player, no controversy about who was right or wrong. Tchouaméni even admitted on media platforms that he was not fully physically ready after his adductor injury – a rare admission from a star player. That brings me to another notable aspect: the maturity in how Tchouaméni handled the situation. At 25, the midfielder has shown remarkable composure. He did not complain on social media, did not pressure through his agent, did not publicly question the coach's decision. Instead, he silently continued training in Madrid, accepted responsibility for his physical condition, and sent a clear message: I will come back stronger. This behavior not only maintains goodwill from the coaching staff but also earns respect from fans for his professionalism. In the sports journalism world, we have a term called "information asymmetry" – what the public sees is usually only a tiny fraction of the story. In this case, the real story is not in the squad list. It lies in Tchouaméni's rehabilitation race, in his fight for a starting spot at Real Madrid amid the fiercest midfield competition in the world, and in the November gathering – where Zidane confirmed "all options remain open" – where Tchouaméni must prove he is ready. From a tactical perspective, Tchouaméni's absence in October will not change France's dynamics. The blue-team's midfield still boasts world-class names: Adrien Rabiot, Eduardo Camavinga, and Youssouf Fofana can all perform the deep-lying playmaker role with near-comparable quality. What Zidane cares about is not filling the gap in October, but ensuring that gap does not appear in June 2026. A stadium without spectators is a heartbeat learning to beat again. That image still haunts me since the pandemic days, when pitches were empty and football's pulse seemed frozen. But that feeling of "learning to beat again" is exactly what Tchouaméni is experiencing. A player returning from injury cannot immediately reach 100% form. He must learn to trust his body again. He must reload match rhythm through every minute, every match, every week. With 120 minutes and one start, Tchouaméni is in the early phase of that process – and Zidane understands that intervening too early would derail a process requiring absolute patience. The data speaks louder than any explanation: two months of absence is not just time in the treatment room. It is time when the body loses its rapid reflex responses in duels, loses the endurance to operate at high intensity for 90 minutes, and loses confidence in executing plays in tight spaces. 120 minutes after two months is insufficient to rebuild that foundation. Zidane could argue that letting Tchouaméni play for the national team would help him accumulate match fitness – but the risk of reinjury when not ready is too great, especially with an adductor injury with a history of high recurrence. Looking at the long term, this decision also sends an important signal to all French internationals: under Zidane, the path to the national team goes through on-pitch performance, not reputation. This brings a certain transparency to the team's selection philosophy, fitting the image of a coach who always prioritizes professionalism. Zidane is notoriously strict about fitness – he once said "a strong team starts with health" – and his handling of Tchouaméni's case reinforces that image. However, I must also consider a potential dark side to this decision. If Tchouaméni suffers a new injury soon – or if the battle for minutes at Real Madrid does not go as expected – he could fall into a spiral of losing his established position. Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti is known for rotation, but if a player does not maintain consistent form, starting opportunities will shift to someone else – and in a squad as deep as Real Madrid's, being replaced is almost a certainty. Therefore, Tchouaméni's race is not just against time on the physiotherapy table. It is a race against club competition, against media pressure, and against ever-growing fan expectations. October is for recovery. November is for proving himself. January through May is the crucial period to accumulate form before entering a pivotal summer: the 2026 World Cup. Looking broader, Zidane's decision reveals an important trait of the new era in the French national team: a willingness to make difficult decisions based on data, not sentiment. Deschamps was known for years for his particular loyalty to players who helped him achieve success. Zidane seems to be building a different culture – where every position must be earned, no position is default. This may cause dissatisfaction among some veterans, but it simultaneously creates positive motivation throughout the squad. There is a detail I believe few noticed: Zidane himself also experienced heavy setbacks due to his body. His career, however great, had painful moments due to injury, and he deeply understands the feeling of being unable to give one's best for the national colors. Perhaps that is why his treatment of Tchouaméni carries a human touch: a phone call, a sincere explanation, a priority on player health – things that seem small but actually make a huge difference in how a team operates. From my experience following matches across Europe over many years, I have observed that teams with sustained success are those that manage players intelligently during non-match periods. Denmark and Belgium easily keep their stars at home when they are not at their best. Spain does the same with key players mid-season. This is a modern football management philosophy, and Zidane – despite only one squad announcement – has shown he understands this deeply. Another dimension must be weighed: the coordination between the national team and the parent club. Keeping Tchouaméni in Madrid during the October break benefits not only the national team but also aligns with Real Madrid's interests. Top clubs typically coordinate closely with national federations to ensure mutual benefits. With La Liga and the Champions League entering a tense phase, keeping a key player at home to fully train and recover during the international break is welcomed by any club. Looking further ahead: if Tchouaméni is managed properly over the next six months, if he can accumulate sufficient minutes and maintain mental focus, then being omitted from one gathering will be just a tiny dot in a long, successful story. Conversely, if things do not go smoothly, Zidane's decision will be viewed as a missed opportunity – a chance to rebuild the match rhythm of one of the world's top central midfielders. Whatever the outcome, there is a lesson anyone who loves football should take from this story: decisions to omit a player from the national team squad are rarely simple. Behind every squad list are phone calls, private conversations, hours of data analysis, and above all, long-term calculations. For Zidane, the long term here is the 2026 World Cup – where he will be judged not only by what happens in October, but by how he builds a squad strong enough to survive a marathon tournament with a championship as the glorious prize awaiting. November will provide the answer. By then, Tchouaméni will have another month and a half of competitive football for Real Madrid, more matches under his belt, and possibly – if all goes well – a completely different physical state. Zidane has opened the door for that return by stating "all options remain open" for the November break. That is not an empty promise, but a clear signal that Tchouaméni's place in France's long-term plans is beyond question. The question now is no longer whether Tchouaméni will return to the national team. The question is how he will return – with a body ready to fight and a mentality of someone who has learned patience. For those who have witnessed many stars collapse because they couldn't wait, Tchouaméni's current handling is a hopeful sign. He is doing everything right. And when the heartbeat returns to a steady rhythm, when the pitch again bears the imprint of his strides, we will see a Tchouaméni fully reborn. As for Zidane, his reign has just had a quiet yet certain beginning. No pomp, no flash. Just a correct decision handled professionally. That is enough to start a great story.