Overview
- The French federation disclosed a roughly 50-player provisional roster on Friday, September 11, giving Zidane a wide group to assess before naming his official squad.
- The list mixes established internationals with several first-time call-ups, including Esteban Lepaul, Pablo Pagis, Ismaïlo Ganiou and Andy Diouf, who have no senior caps for France.
- Zidane will trim the list to a final squad on September 18 to prepare for four Nations League fixtures against Turkey, Belgium, Italy and Belgium between September 25 and October 5.
- Reports name David Bettoni as Zidane’s assistant and Fabien Barthez as goalkeeping coach, showing Zidane is importing trusted staff while reshaping the technical team.
- Provisional lists of about 50 players are routine and are sent to clubs roughly 15 days before the final squad is announced, but clubs sometimes do not tell players they are on the preliminary list, which can affect how players learn of a call-up.