Zinedine Zidane, the sanction falls

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By: Nicolas Gerbault

Is Zinédine Zidane among the very best players in the history of football? “Zizou” is obviously a legend of the round ball and, seen from France, it is part of the very closed circle of Greatest of All Time Accompanying the illustrious Pelé and Diego Maradona as well as the Lionel Messi superstars and Cristiano Ronaldo. Number 10 of the Blues of Aimé Jacquet and Roger Lemerre, the native of Marseille obviously took his selection to the coronation at the World Cup 98, from a double of the head in the final against Brazil (3-0), before offering a magnificent double with the victory in Euro 2000.

Elected Ballon d'Or 98, Zidane then became the emblematic player of Real Madrid galactics, in this constellation of stars offered by Florentino Pérez in the early 2000s. The elegant playmaker entered the heart of the many supporters of Casa Blanca with his decisive goal in the final of the 2002 Champions League, of a memorable left -back Leverkusen. However, he only won the Liga once (in 2003) and lacked the opportunity to win a second World Cup with the French team in 2006.

Zinedine Zidane Double scorer in the France-Brazil 98 final.

For some, Zinedine Zidane, superstar of his time, suffers from the comparison with the other legends of football. The debate has been raging on social networks lately. It must be said, already, that “Zizou” was not a stats machine. A attacking midfielder in a much more undecided football (and very defensive in Serie A), he scored little with Juventus (he even made a season with 2 goals in 40 games in 1998-1999) before doing brilliant years offensively with Real (with an average of 10 goals and 14 assists per exercise among the Merengues).

Zidane behind “R9”

In the last updating of the 100 best players in the history of Two oven ovenZidane is precisely downgraded! Whoever became a coach (and who will probably be coach of the French team after the 2026 World Cup) was 5th in 2022. The top 5 is over. He fell in 7th place in the ranking published a few days ago by the British media. Lionel Messi is the Goatlead in front of Pelé and Diego Maradona. Cristiano Ronaldo is 4th, while Johan Cruyff and Ronaldo are 5th and 6th in front of “Zizou”. Ronaldo “Il Fenomeno”, double golden ball, was only 10th three years ago …

About Zidane, Two oven oven rent the beauty of a “Artist at work”evoking “An intoxicating cocktail of technique, grace, competitiveness and an astonishing ability to choose your moments with APLOMB”. By explaining:
“Most athletes focus their game on what is most likely to bring them success, sacrificing aesthetics and extravagance on the altar of brilliant medals. For Zidane, such a compromise was a heresy: success was simply the inevitable consequence of its beauty on the ground. »»