Without a club since his departure from Real Madrid in 2021, Zinedine Zidane continues to make the news. Often cited among the favorites to succeed Didier Deschamps at the head of the France team, the 1998 Ballon d'Or retains its aura intact. Through his talent and his personality, he has had a profound impact on world football, both as a player and as a coach. And some of his former teammates, like Philippe Mexès, remember him as a man as great in his game as in his heart.
Podcast guest Kampohosted by SmaĂŻl Bouabdellah, the former central defender looked back on his beginnings with the Blues. A warm memory, that of his first call-up among the legends of French football, including Zidane.
“I saw the person he was”
“I started my first selection in 2003 (2002, editor’s note), I think. There was 2002 with Roger Lemerre, which had Zinedine Zidane, (Marcel) Desailly, (Lilian) Thuram, (Bixente) Lizarazu, (Fabien) Barthez, (Robert) Pirès, (Thierry) Henry, (David) Trezeguet… I saw them on TV, that is. The first selections were in Cyprus (Malta in reality). I come home and well, there is Zidane on the pitch anyway, you see. Zidane on the pitch, for me, I don't fully realize it. It's a dream that I'm making come true. So I'm a little paralyzed, you see. I don't know where to stand.”remembered the former Rossonero.
But what Mexès has never forgotten is above all Zidane's little attention towards him during this first experience in EDF. To celebrate his big first, the Blues star gave him an unexpected gift.
“And then, I hear a knock, and please, there is Zinedine entering the room. He had a portable DVD player, with a three hour battery on the side. He said to me: “Here, present.” And there, I was moved. I was shocked, I said no. And there, I saw the person that it was”he confided.
