Twenty years after his last appearance in a France shirt, Zinedine Zidane was back among Les Bleus, this time from the manager's seat. As everyone prepared for "La Marseillaise" before the match against Turkey, Zidane was nowhere to be seen at the anthem's start, a scene that drew plenty of attention.
He put it down to the protocol arriving quicker than expected, telling the press conference afterwards: "Unfortunately, yes. The protocol was quicker than expected, and I was a little late in starting. I would have preferred to be there from the beginning."
Turkey against France ended 1-0 to Les Bleus. It was Zidane's first match at the helm of the French technical staff, marking his return to the national team fold after two decades away, since the 2006 World Cup final against Italy.
The win did more than launch his coaching career with France. It carried real historic weight, making Zidane the first France manager to win his opening match since Aimé Jacquet.
Jacquet kicked off his own reign with Les Bleus by beating Italy 1-0 in Naples on 16 February 1994, Youri Djorkaeff grabbing the goal.
Five managers took charge of the French national team between Jacquet's era and Zidane's arrival. None of them won their first match. Zidane broke the streak with a precious victory over Turkey.