Everyone remembers World Cup 2006 for the infamous headbutt incedent performed by one of football's most celebrated stars, Zinedine Zidane, on the scheming, slimy king of trickery and dirty tackles, Marco Materazzi who egged on the Frenchman with disgusting insults. (You may have guessed I'm not a great fan of his, but that is a tale for another day). An image of the French captain marching off the pitch, as ordered by the form of a red card, in the World Cup finals, passed football's most beloved trophy he dared not to look at, is one of the saddest sights football has ever seen. Can this single incident scar an entire career of greatness? For me it's a definite "no." Zidane or, Zizou was a hero to me. We shared the same number, 5. He will go down in world, French, and Real Madrid history as one of the greats., I'm hear to tell you why.
A French boy of 17 made his debut for AS Cannes in Ligue 1 where he also bulged the onion bag for the first time in his career. From then on, the player of Algerian decent was destined for nothing short of legendary. At age 21 the rising genius, made the switch to Bordeaux. Zidane was eligible to play for the Algerian national team but decided for to play for the country that raised him (you hear that Rossi?). He made his French debut in 1994 against the Czech Republic where he came on as substitute. The score was 2-0 to the Czechs when he entered the match. It ended at 2-2; Zizou had both. He began to taste what it was like to lift silverware where his side won the 1995 Intertoto Cup and came agonisingly close to the UEFA Cup, placing as runners-up the fallowing season. Zidane decided to leave his homeland and travel to Italy where Juventus signed him for £3 million in the summer of 1996. The next season Juve went on to win the Serie A and reached the Champions League final only to be flushed out by Borrusia Dortmund 3-1. Zizou and Juve retained their Italian crowned the next season and also returned to the Champions League final to be edged by Spanish giants and Zidane's next Club, Real Madrid, 1-0. In the summer of 1998 Zidane was the hero in France's triumph 3-0 of Brazil in the World Cup final in France, scoring 2 of the 3 goals. In 2000, France won the Euro tournament with the help of Zizou making France the first team to hold the Euro and World Cup crown since West Germany in 1974. In the summer of 2001, he made the move to Madrid for what was at the time the highest transfer fee in history. Zidane would establish his name for himself on the club level in Madrid. He had entered the stage in his career that many player on can dream of standing on, performing on. It was here, wearing a white shirt, that Zidane would find his moment of European glory. He scored the winning goal of the Champions League final against Bayern Leverkusen in arguably the greatest Champions League goal to date. Brazilian left back Roberto Carlos was busy down the left flank with a bouncing ball he managed to loop to the edge of the area before it passed the endline for a goal kick. The rainbowing ball came falling toward an eagerly awaiting Zidane who thumped the ball with a left-footed side volley into the top left corner of the net. France's luck had long since run out in the 2002 World Cup hosted by South Korea and Japan. Zizou was injured for the first two games of the tournament and did not see action. The former world champions exited the tournament without a win. Zidane only ever enjoyed one La Liga success in the 2002-2003 season. He retired from international duty after France were knocked out of Euro 2004 by Greece. Zidane's international career was over, or was it? French coach, Raymond Domenech pleaded with Zidane to return for just one more tournament with France, the 2006 World Cup. After a sad trophyless season in Madrid, Zizou made it known that he would play in the World Cup, but those games would be the last of his a career as a footballer all together. Zidane was the best player at the tournament. Instantly he was reinstated as team captain. He played with elegance and class that may never be matched. In the France vs Brazil knock out round he easily outshined over-hyped Brazilian and Barcelona star, Ronaldinho. He played a key role in the knockout matches against Portugal and Spain sending his team eventually to the Final where he had the nerve to chip extremely highly rated Italian goalkeeper, Gianluigi Buffon, on a penalty kick drawn by French winger, Malouda early in the first half. As we all know, Zidane's moment in the sun which would have probably seen him go out on top and seal one of the greatest careers the world has ever seen, was sent off in flames as the captain was shown the infamous red card.
No one should let the last chapter in the fairytale of Zizou scar his entire career. Not all stories have a happy ending. He is a warrior for the game of football. He always played with desire and passion. He is a leader and a real personality. When asked if he was going to apologize to Materazzi, his answer was no. He then said, that would make what he said okay. He'll always be a hero to me and many others. Viva Zizou!
Team Honors:
A French boy of 17 made his debut for AS Cannes in Ligue 1 where he also bulged the onion bag for the first time in his career. From then on, the player of Algerian decent was destined for nothing short of legendary. At age 21 the rising genius, made the switch to Bordeaux. Zidane was eligible to play for the Algerian national team but decided for to play for the country that raised him (you hear that Rossi?). He made his French debut in 1994 against the Czech Republic where he came on as substitute. The score was 2-0 to the Czechs when he entered the match. It ended at 2-2; Zizou had both. He began to taste what it was like to lift silverware where his side won the 1995 Intertoto Cup and came agonisingly close to the UEFA Cup, placing as runners-up the fallowing season. Zidane decided to leave his homeland and travel to Italy where Juventus signed him for £3 million in the summer of 1996. The next season Juve went on to win the Serie A and reached the Champions League final only to be flushed out by Borrusia Dortmund 3-1. Zizou and Juve retained their Italian crowned the next season and also returned to the Champions League final to be edged by Spanish giants and Zidane's next Club, Real Madrid, 1-0. In the summer of 1998 Zidane was the hero in France's triumph 3-0 of Brazil in the World Cup final in France, scoring 2 of the 3 goals. In 2000, France won the Euro tournament with the help of Zizou making France the first team to hold the Euro and World Cup crown since West Germany in 1974. In the summer of 2001, he made the move to Madrid for what was at the time the highest transfer fee in history. Zidane would establish his name for himself on the club level in Madrid. He had entered the stage in his career that many player on can dream of standing on, performing on. It was here, wearing a white shirt, that Zidane would find his moment of European glory. He scored the winning goal of the Champions League final against Bayern Leverkusen in arguably the greatest Champions League goal to date. Brazilian left back Roberto Carlos was busy down the left flank with a bouncing ball he managed to loop to the edge of the area before it passed the endline for a goal kick. The rainbowing ball came falling toward an eagerly awaiting Zidane who thumped the ball with a left-footed side volley into the top left corner of the net. France's luck had long since run out in the 2002 World Cup hosted by South Korea and Japan. Zizou was injured for the first two games of the tournament and did not see action. The former world champions exited the tournament without a win. Zidane only ever enjoyed one La Liga success in the 2002-2003 season. He retired from international duty after France were knocked out of Euro 2004 by Greece. Zidane's international career was over, or was it? French coach, Raymond Domenech pleaded with Zidane to return for just one more tournament with France, the 2006 World Cup. After a sad trophyless season in Madrid, Zizou made it known that he would play in the World Cup, but those games would be the last of his a career as a footballer all together. Zidane was the best player at the tournament. Instantly he was reinstated as team captain. He played with elegance and class that may never be matched. In the France vs Brazil knock out round he easily outshined over-hyped Brazilian and Barcelona star, Ronaldinho. He played a key role in the knockout matches against Portugal and Spain sending his team eventually to the Final where he had the nerve to chip extremely highly rated Italian goalkeeper, Gianluigi Buffon, on a penalty kick drawn by French winger, Malouda early in the first half. As we all know, Zidane's moment in the sun which would have probably seen him go out on top and seal one of the greatest careers the world has ever seen, was sent off in flames as the captain was shown the infamous red card.
No one should let the last chapter in the fairytale of Zizou scar his entire career. Not all stories have a happy ending. He is a warrior for the game of football. He always played with desire and passion. He is a leader and a real personality. When asked if he was going to apologize to Materazzi, his answer was no. He then said, that would make what he said okay. He'll always be a hero to me and many others. Viva Zizou!
Team Honors:
- Uefa Intertot Cup 1995,1999
- Serie A 1996-1997, 1997-1998
- European Super Cup 1997
- Intercontinental Cup 1996,2002
- La Liga: 2002-2003
- Spanish Super Cup 2001, 2003
- European Super Cup 2002
- UEFA Champions League 2002
- FIFAWorld Cup 1998
- UEFA European Championship 2000
Individual Honors
- Ballon d'Or awarded to Zidane 1998
- Ligue 1 Best Young Player 1994
- Ligue 1 Best Player 1996
- UEFA Champions League Best Midfielder 1998
- UEFA Euro Player 1996
- Serie A Foreign Player of the Year 1997, 2001
- Serie A Footballer of the Year 2001
- Onze d'Or 1998, 2000,2001
- French Player of the Year 1998, 2002
- UEFA Club Footballer of the Year 2002
- UEFA Team of the Year 2001, 2002, 2003
- FIFA World Player of the Year 1998, 2000, 2003
- UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll 2004
- FIFA 100
- UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament- 2000, 2004
- FIFA World Cup Golden Ball 2006
- FIFA World Cup All-Star Team 1998, 2006
- FIFA World XI All-Star Team 2005, 2006
What a man...
Viva el futbol y Hala Madrid
Bobby
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