Zinédine Zidane’s football career is simply legendary. A look back at the main episodes that marked the exceptional journey of “Zizou”.
When football legends are mentioned, Zidane’s name may not come up as instantly as Pele or Maradona, but he is never far behind. However, when the native of the sixteenth arrondissement of Marseille began his professional career at the end of the 80s at AS Cannes, his incredible destiny was difficult to predict. Certainly, this young attacking midfielder possessed above-average technical qualities. Without the Bosman ruling, his career would perhaps not have been the one we know. After winning the UNFP trophy for best player in the First Division in 1996, his departure from the Girondins de Bordeaux for Juventus Turin allowed him to discover the “culture of winning”.
On July 12, 1998, “Zizou” reached the Grail by winning the World Cup in France, with the Blues, scoring a double in the final against Brazil. Two years later, the French number 10 won Euro 2000, a competition at the end of which he was named best player. In 2001, this son of a machine driver became the most expensive player in the history of football by being transferred to Real Madrid for 77.5 million euros. In his first season in the “White House”, he won the Champions League. Once again, the player of Algerian origin scores in the final, with a sumptuous volley. The final match of his career, against Italy in the 2006 World Cup final, will be like his career: legendary. Author of the opener, he was sent off in overtime after headbutting Marco Materazzi.
