Ranking the 5 greatest French managers of all time

Arsene Wenger (L) and Didier Deschamps(R) are among the most successful French managers of all time.
Arsene Wenger (L) and Didier Deschamps(R) are among the most successful French managers of all time.

#3 Zinedine Zidane

Zinedine Zidane (right) and Pep Guardiola (left) are among the best coaches in the world.
Zinedine Zidane (right) and Pep Guardiola (left) are among the best coaches in the world.

Zinedine Zidane already has a convincing case for the title of best player in French history. By the time his managerial career comes to an end, it won't be a surprise if he's comfortably the most successful French head coach as well.

Critics of Zidane question his coaching abilities, and that he has only managed one club, Real Madrid, who had the best squad in the world at the time. However, the numbers don't lie. He has won 190 of his 301 games as Los Blancos head coach, giving him a staggering win percentage of over 63.

He is one of only three managers to have won the Champions League (formerly known as the European Cup) three times. In fact, Zidane is the only coach to win the prestigious competition three times in a row, which is a record that could stand for a very long time. He also won the La Liga, FIFA Club World Cup, Spanish Super Cup and UEFA Super Cup two times apiece.

With 11 trophies in just six seasons (two of which were incomplete), Zidane could end as one of the greatest coaches ever. He is just 49 years old, and has a long career ahead of him. It is an open secret that he covets the French national team job, and could take over after this year's FIFA World Cup in Qatar.


#2 Didier Deschamps

Didier Deschamps with his 201 FIFA World Cup winners medal
Didier Deschamps with his 201 FIFA World Cup winners medal

After captaining France to glory at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, it was only fitting that Didier Deschamps coached them to a second triumph in the 2018 edition. The memorable win saw him become just the third man to win the FIFA World Cup both as a player and a manager.

Tasked with picking up the pieces of a broken French national team after a disastrous 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign, Deschamps delivered in style.

France reached the final of Euro 2016, falling to Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal. They finally exorcised the demons by clinching the 2018 World Cup, and also added the 2020 Nations League to their haul of international trophies. Les Bleus will also enter this year's World Cup in Qatar as one of the favourites.

Although there are question marks over Deschamps' pragmatic and defensive approach, his results speak for himself. At club level, he took AS Monaco to the 2003 Champions League final, and helped the French team win a Coupe de France trophy.

He also helped Juventus climb out of Serie B in 2006-07 after the infamous match-fixing scandal. Deschamps won Ligue 1 with Marseille in 2010, and three consecutive French Cups. A calm manager who never walks away from even the toughest of situations, Deschamps is undoubtedly a French legend.


#1 Arsene Wenger

Frenchman Arsene Wenger soaks in the applause from Arsenal and Huddersfield fans.
Frenchman Arsene Wenger soaks in the applause from Arsenal and Huddersfield fans.

One of the brightest minds the sport has seen, Arsene Wenger had brilliance that cannot be overstated. Although he has never coached the French national team, Wenger is one of the greatest club managers in football history.

The Frenchman has changed football as we know it, and deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as revolutionaries such as Rinus Michels and Johann Cryuff. In the late 1980s and 1990s, Wenger introduced new training methods, diets, strategies and tactics while transforming the way players approached games.

Wenger made his name with Monaco in France, leading the club to the 1987-88 Ligue 1 title in his debut season as the club's manager. He also led them to a Coupe de France triumph and the final of the 1992 European Cup Winners' Cup.

He then had an unexpected yet successful stint in Japan with Nagoya Grampus, winning trophies, before arriving at Arsenal in 1996. Wenger spent the next 22 years with the Gunners, winning three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups.

Under the Frenchman, Arsenal became famous for playing an attractive, free-flowing, silky brand of football. Wenger's style at the time was quite different from the direct and physical approach of English football, yet the Arsenal manager was the catalyst for change. He managed the Gunners in 1224 matches, winning 708 of them.

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Edited by Bhargav
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