The climate is growing heavy around the president of the French Football Federation (FFF), Noël Le Graët.

The latter, during an interview on Sunday January 8, did not spare the legend of the Blues Zinédine Zidane.

He thus drew the wrath of Kylian Mbappé and the Minister of Sports, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, at the risk of further aggravating his case just before being heard by the audit mission on the malfunctions at the FFF.

The fault of statements made at the microphone of RMC and which were quick to cause controversy.

The crime of the 81-year-old Breton leader?

Attacking the icon of French football and sport, Zinédine Zidane, barely 20 hours after the announcement of the extension of Didier Deschamps at the head of the France team until 2026.

Asked whether the former playmaker, who acted as the number 1 option at the head of the Blues in the event of non-renewal of Didier Deschamps' contract, had called him in recent days, Noël Le Graët is shown to be very brittle towards the 1998 world champion and former Real Madrid manager.

"I wouldn't even have taken him on the phone, he blurted out. To tell him what? 'Hello sir, don't worry, look for another club, I just agreed with Didier?' ".

"Zidane is France"

The FFF boss also responded curtly to rumors of the Brazilian Federation's interest in Zidane.

"I would be surprised if he left there, he said. He does what he wants, it does not concern me. I have never met him and we have never considered getting together. separate from Didier Deschamps. I don't care, he can go where he wants, in a club, he would have as many as he wants in Europe, a big club. A selection, I hardly believe it as far as I'm concerned."

But we do not touch "ZZ" with impunity.

This undiplomatic exit from Noël le Graët was not at all to the taste of the star of the Blues, Kylian Mbappé.

"Zidane is France, we don't disrespect the legend like that...", wrote the PSG striker on Twitter.

Zidane is France, we don't disrespect the legend like that... 🤦🏽‍♂️

— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) January 8, 2023

This is not the first time that Mbappé has dared to challenge the president of the FFF.

After Euro-2021, he criticized him for not having defended him enough after being the subject of racist insults following his missed shot on goal against Switzerland in the round of 16.

Then he led the battle over image rights in the France team, forcing the Federation to review the convention governing this issue. 

"Apologies for this word too much"

Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra went even further by immediately demanding an "apology" from Noël Le Graët.     

"Statements again above ground with the added bonus this time of a shameful lack of respect, which hurts us all, to a legend of football and sport: a president of the first sports federation in France should not say that. Apologies for this word too much on Z.Zidane please", she wrote on her Twitter account.

Amélie Oudéa-Castera's reaction comes in a context of extreme tension between the minister and Noël le Graët.

The FFF is indeed the subject of an audit and control mission commissioned by the Ministry of Sports to clarify in particular the managerial practices of the body in terms of gender-based and sexual violence.

Noël Le Graët and the director general of the FFF, Florence Hardouin, must be auditioned by this mission this week.

These comments on Zinédine Zidane can in any case only further weaken the former mayor of Guingamp, whose third and last mandate will end at the end of 2024. The atmosphere has been heavy around Noël Le Graët for several weeks and the revelations by several media, based on anonymous testimonies, alleged sending of sexual text messages to employees, and accusations by former employees of "harassment" and "inappropriate" behavior.

What the leader has always denied.

The president of the FFF has also multiplied the controversial outings, in particular about the world in Qatar, opposing in particular the wearing by the captain of the Blues, Hugo Lloris, of the rainbow armband "One Love" against discrimination or minimizing the plight of migrant workers, at the risk of fueling criticism and accentuating the divide with the Minister of Sports.

With AFP

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