Der Zakarian lived in France from a young age (he was raised in Marseille)[1] and spent his entire professional career in the country with Nantes and Montpellier, winning the league with the former in 1983.

Der Zakarian was assistant to Georges Eo at Nantes, and succeeded him on 12 February 2007 when the team was 19th in Ligue 1; this was their fifth change of the position since winning the league title in 2001.

[3] The Canaris were relegated, and he brought them back immediately from Ligue 2 as runners up to Le Havre, but was sacked on 26 August 2008 after gaining one point from the first three games of the season, and was replaced by Christian Larièpe, who became the interim manager.

[6] In 2012–13, his first season back at the Stade de la Beaujoire, Der Zakarian again won Nantes promotion to Ligue 1, in third place.

[10] The club ended that season in 6th, missing out on UEFA Europa League qualification only due to the results of the domestic cup finals.