Zinedine Zidane is the brightest football star at the turn of the century. The French midfielder was the one for whom spectators went to the stadium and watched football on TV. Zinedine Zidane Bio And Football Career:
Demonstrating a magical game for a whole decade, he forever entered world football history.
Zinedine Zidane Bio And Football Career
Born on 23.06.1972
Player Career :
- Cannes France (1988-1992; 71 matches, 6 goals).
- Bordeaux France (1992-1996; 179 matches, 39 goals).
- Juventus Italy (1996-2001; 209 matches, 31 goals).
- Real Madrid Spain (2001-2006; 225 matches, 49 goals).
- France national team (1994-2006; 108 matches, 31 goals).
Team Achievements :
- 1998 World Champion.
- Silver medalist of the 2006 World Championship.
- European Champion 2000.
- Bronze medalist of the 1996 European Championship.
- 2002 Champions League Winner.
- Winner of the UEFA Super Cup 1996, 2002.
- Winner of the 1996, 2002 Intercontinental Cup.
- Champion of Italy 1997, 1998.
- Winner of the Italian Super Cup in 1997.
- Champion of Spain in 2003.
- Winner of the Spanish Super Cup 2001, 2003.
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Personal Achievements :
- Football player 1998, 2000, 2003 according to FIFA.
- Winner of the Golden Ball for the best football player in Europe in 1998.
- The best football player of the 2006 World Cup.
- The best foreign football player in the Italian championships 1997, 2000, 2001.
- The best foreign football player of the Spanish Championship in 2002.
- The best football player in France 1998, 2002.
- Most Valuable Player in the 2002 Champions League.
- The best midfielder of the Champions League in 1998.
Coaching Career :
- Coach of Real Madrid Spain (2013-2015).
- Head coach of Real Madrid Spain (2016-2018; 2019-present).
Coaching Achievements :
- Winner of the Champions League 2016-2018.
- Winner of the UEFA Super Cup 2016, 2017.
- Winner of the Club World Cup 2016, 2017.
- Champion of Spain 2017.
- Winner of the Spanish Super Cup 2017.
Childhood And Youth
Despite the fact that Zidane was born in the suburbs of Marseille, he has the most African roots – his parents emigrated to France from Algeria in the distant 50s. Zinedine was the youngest child in a family, in which, besides him, four more children grew up – a sister and three brothers.
Since childhood, Zizu was fond of sports, which was given to him better than studying at school. He achieved some success in judo, but the closest thing to him was football, which he began to play in the streets of his hometown.
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At the age of ten, he starts playing for the local children’s team, and at the age of fourteen, he enters a special training camp, which is organized by the French Football Federation for young talents.
There Zidane shows himself and gets noticed by the breeders of “Cannes”. As a result, he signs a contract with the club and moves to the Cote d’Azur.
Professional Growth
Despite the fact that in the main line-up of “Cannes” Zinedine made his debut even before his 17th birthday, his career soon slowed down. For more than a year he did not go out on the field, but did not lose heart, but continued to work.
At the heart of Zidane was registered in the 1990/1991 season. The young midfielder took his place in the center of the field, and since then his stay in the main team has not raised questions. The following year, he scored five goals in the French championship and at the age of 20 moved to Bordeaux, while his Cannes went to the second division.
Zizou spent four years at Bordeaux, and it was during his tenure with this team that he made his debut in the French national team. This long-awaited moment happened in August 1994 and will be remembered by everyone who is interested in football. Zidane came on as a substitute in a friendly against the Czechs and made a double.
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He soon established himself in the main squad of the national team and became one of those with whom hopes were pinned for the revival of French football, which in the early 90s was not in the best condition.
At Bordeaux, by that time Zinedine had begun to play a key role, becoming an indispensable element in midfield. Skillfully conducting the game of partners, Zidane drew attention to himself with an excellent vision of the field and a high culture of passing. At the same time, he was good in the final stages of attacks.
Juventus Leader
In the summer of 1996, two important events happened in the life of Zizu. First, he won the bronze medal of the European Championship and then moved to Turin, Italy, where Juventus is based.
Zidane joined the team that was the current winner of the Champions League, so he didn’t have much time to build up. Serie A at that time was rightfully considered the strongest championship in Europe, replete with a scattering of stars of the first magnitude. And Zinedine became another decoration of the Italian championship.
At Juve, he reached a truly stellar level of play. His ability to deliver a sharp, penetrating pass, to take the lead near the penalty area, to dribble at a wide stride reached the highest level in Italy.
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Zidane was the leader of the most powerful team, with which he became the two-time champion of Italy and twice in a row reached the Champions League final. Interestingly, before both lost matches, Juventus were the favorites, but Borussia Dortmund and then Real Madrid did not agree with the initial balance of power.
Hero of France
By the 1998 World Cup, which was hosted by France, Zidane became the main hope of the “tricolors” for a successful performance at the home tournament. However, there were no special illusions in the country itself – both fans and experts did not consider Zinedine and the company to be equal to the generation of the 80s, led by Michel Platini.
However, the French started the tournament very cheerfully, securing a place in the playoffs after two matches. The main role in the team was predictably played by Zidane, to whose actions on the field flattering epithets were increasingly used.
True, in the second meeting, he earned a removal and a subsequent disqualification for two games, instantly turning from a hero into a man who could fly bumps in the event of a misfire in the elimination matches.
Fortunately, it did not happen in 1/8, when Zinedine watched the game of his team from the stands. Laurent Blanc rescued the national team, and Zidane returned to the field in the quarterfinals. Two tough matches with Italians and Croats – and France in the final.
As befits a leader, he spoke his word at the right moment. Having scored two goals in the decisive match to the Brazilians, Zizou inscribed his name in history – the French became world champions for the first time.
Of course, success at the world championship did not go unnoticed – Zidane is recognized by FIFA as the player of the year and is also awarded the Golden Ball for the best football player in Europe. From this moment, the period of Zizu’s reign on the football horizon begins.
He confirms his exceptional level two years later at Euro 2000. The French came to the championship of the continent in the rank of favorite and in all matches, they corresponded to their high status.
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By this time, Zidane’s star sparkled with full light – if a couple of years ago the same Djorkaeff could compete with him for the laurels of the main prima of the national team, now the tenth number of the “tricolors” was the undisputed leader of the national team.
The whole game of the French was built around Zidane, who seemed to be acting just flawlessly. Not a single wrong move, inaccurate pass, inappropriate dribbling – the playmaker played as befits a football maestro, which experts believed him to be.
As in the homeworld championship, Zinedine especially showed himself in the elimination matches, scoring a goal in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Becoming the European champion, Zidane took a big step towards winning the second title of the best football player in the world, which he eventually got.
Royal Games
Meanwhile, despite Zidane’s brilliant performance, Juventus began to lose ground in Serie A, which had lost its undisputed leadership in Italian football. A small peak of the Turin grandee coincided with the transformation of Real Madrid, whose leaders decided to once again make a superclub out of their team.
First, Luis Figo moved to Madrid from Barcelona, and a year later Zidane also found himself in the capital of Spain, who got into a team with ambitions worthy of his talent. Football for Zizou was an art that is prized above all else in Example.
Together with partners of his level, the Frenchman really shone on the field. Playing with peers is a pleasure. But even in such a stellar company, Zidane managed to stand out – in his understanding of the game he had no equal, even in “galacticos”.
With Real Madrid, Zinedine finally got a taste of victory in the Champions League, becoming the author of the winning year in the final, winning the Spanish Championship, two Super Cups of the country, and, like being a Juventus player, became the owner of the UEFA Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup.
Great Goodbye To The Game
Despite many trophies and excellent years at Juve and Real Madrid, Zidane’s great performance was still made for the French national team. How indispensable he became for the “tricolors” was shown by the 2002 World Championship, in which the reigning world champions simply failed without their injured leader.
Two years later, Zizu was healthy and again led the team, but this time he limited himself to exploits in the group stage. But at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, as usual, Zidane saved up the main action for the decisive matches.
The French were not in the best condition for the main tournament of the four-year period. By all accounts, the champion generation has passed its peak, and the group stage has confirmed this. The national team showed a frankly faded game and, not without difficulty, reached the playoffs.
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But in the matches for the elimination of the “tricolor” was unrecognizable – Zidane got down to business. As in his best years (in the summer of 2006 he turned 34), Zizu was impeccable, regularly leaving his rivals fools.
He actually dragged the national team to the final on his shoulders, having distinguished himself in the 1/8, semifinals and giving an assist in the quarterfinal match with Brazil.
The most important thing remained ahead – the final. Win him the French, and Zidane could, in the context of the entire football history, come as close as possible to the best of the best – Pele and Maradona – and stand on a par with the brilliant Beckenbauer, Cruyff, Di Stefano.
The French lost, but this did not negatively affect the greatness of Zidane. On the contrary, the events of the final match with the Italians convinced everyone even more that Zizou is more than one of the two, along with Ronaldo, the best players of his generation.
Yes, Zinedine could not restrain himself and gave vent to emotions, hitting the provocateur Materazzi. Thus, he let his team down, depriving it, most likely, of a guaranteed goal scored in the penalty shootout.
But no one will be able to reproach him for having passed, got scared. Yes, and Zidane himself could not allow this – he never allowed anyone to humiliate himself, which makes his portrait even brighter.
Immediately after the end of the decisive match, Zizu announced the end of his football career. Someone, of course, can say that its finale turned out to be blurry and ambiguous, but no one will argue with the fact that no one had such a bright farewell to the game. And this is true – who played the best and should leave in a special way.
Beginning Coach-Champion
Having hung his boots on a nail, Zidane did not retire from football affairs. In 2009, he was appointed assistant to the president of Real Madrid, and a year later, the Frenchman went even higher when he received the position of adviser to the main person in the club.
But this is not the final point of his career growth – soon Zinedine became the sports director of “galacticos”.
It would seem that the top of the managerial profession has been reached, but it did not suit the Frenchman. He left the post of director and switched to coaching, which is nevertheless closer to him in spirit.
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For several years Zidane has made his way from assistant Carlo Ancelotti to the head coach of Real Madrid. He made his debut as helmsman for the Royal Club in January 2016, and after just over four months led to victory in the Champions League, repeating the triumph in the next two seasons.
Unlike his football history, Zidane started off right as a coach. But even such a super successful debut of a Frenchman does not mean that he automatically became a great coach.
Zinedine, like no one else, knows that you need to keep your level constantly, otherwise there will be those who will overtake you and come out ahead. And if so, Zizu is ready to fight for trophies, from which he is used to emerging victorious.
