Zinédine Zidane

Zinédine Zidane, born June 23, 1972 in Marseille, is a Franco-Algerian international footballer playing as an attacking midfielder, as a playmaker who became a coach. Nicknamed Zizou, he is considered one of the greatest players in the history of football. He won numerous titles, both with the French team and with the clubs where he played, such as Girondins de Bordeaux, Juventus and Real Madrid, and was named best player of the year at least once in each championship in which he played.

Zidane is, according to the BBC, the best European player in history. He was named the best European player of the last fifty years by UEFA in 2004. He was cited among the 125 best players in the world still alive in 2004, in a joint ranking by Pelé and FIFA. He was named best world player of the year by FIFA three times, in 1998, 2000 and 2003, and won the 1998 Ballon d'Or. Although he was twice ranked second best French player of all time by France Football, he is for L'Équipe the best French footballer in history. In 2011 he was voted best player in the Champions League of the last twenty years by UEFA. Member of the UEFA Team of the 21st Century, the Euro Legends' Eleven, the FIFA World Cup Dream Team and the World Soccer Dream Team, Zinédine Zidane was also voted best player of the 2000 decade by Marca, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, ESPN and Don Balón.

Selected 108 times and 25 times captain of the France team, Zinédine Zidane distinguished himself mainly at international level during the victory at the 1998 World Cup where he scored two headed goals in the final won 3 goals to 0 against Brazil, at the 2000 European Championship also won, and at the 2006 World Cup where his exploits took France to the final. Famous number 10 of the “Blues”, nicknamed “El Magnifico”, he ended his career following the 2006 World Cup, where he won the title of best player of the World Cup. On July 9, 2006, he played his last match for the national team during the World Cup final between Italy and France. He distinguished himself by scoring his thirty-first goal in the French jersey with a successful panenka, but also by his expulsion on a red card for his header to the chest of Marco Materazzi. ...