Here Weren’T Necessarily Any Rules to Stop Independence
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The football Pink The Zinedine Zidane Issue 2 I I3 CONTENTS 4 La Castellane: The upbringing that fueled Zidane’s quest for greatness 10 Enzo Francescoli: Zidane’s idol 14 The foreword to a bestselling career: Zidane’s career in French football 20 Post-Platini decline: France, Euro ‘96 and Zidane’s new generation 26 Zinedine Zidane at Juventus: Becoming the King of Italy 34 Zinedine Zidane: “More entertaining than effective” 38 2003: When Zidane and Ronaldo stunned Old Trafford and Zizou’s sole La Liga title win 44 So near and yet so far: “Why do you want to sign Zidane when we have Tim Sherwood?” 48 Zidane’s swansong: The 2006 World Cup 54 Anger management: Balancing the talent with the tantrums The Zinedine Zidane Effect: Turning the Real Madrid embarrassed by Barcelona into 60 European champions I 66 Zinedine Zidane: The third lightning bolt 72 Understanding Zidanology: An inspiration to a generation 4 I I5 La Castellane: The upbringing that fueled Zidane’s quest for greatness 6 7 Today, Zinedine Zidane is footballing royalty Castellane is a concrete maze which may Zidane building’ during and after his time taught it to himself. It is typical of the street but his humble beginnings don’t paint a not necessarily make you fall in love at first living and developing his legendary skills in footballer to be a very good ball-carrier. It picture bearing any semblance of nobility. sight. this community. While that building has now is generally very much a ‘fend for yourself’ I La Castellane is just over 10km north of the been demolished, Zidane’s legacy lives on environment to develop your skills. On the I centre of Marseille and while, near the heart This, however, was all that Yazid - as the and still casts a ray of light over the gloomy streets of La Castellane, playing football of the city, you can swoon over the glorious young Zizou was affectionately known surroundings. is, in some ways, an escape and when the gardens at Palais Longchamp, this bit of by family, friends and all those within La streets of that labyrinth transform into a grandeur doesn’t tell the whole story of life Castellane - knew and when he began to On the pitch, some of Zidane’s primary stadium for would-be stars of the game, in Marseille. Young Zidane’s palace was the play football in this area surrounded by said attributes were his dribbling and his Place de la Tartane becomes Le Stade de streets in which he sowed the seeds of a family and friends, that’s when he brought unwavering determination. His dribbling, France or Estadio Santiago Bernabéu and football legend - ‘Zizou’. life and vibrance to these, at first glance, in particular, was simply majestic. Anyone football is played for the sake of playing unspectacular streets. who’s watched Zidane, at his best, football. Before he became Zizou, the playmaker who playing a game of football could surely do would go on to win just about every honour Still to this day, this area is not without its nothing more than marvel at the legendary This is why Zidane was such an artist and he possibly could during his illustrious issues, as it is associated more with crime playmaker as he glided around the pitch, why he truly expressed himself every time playing career was ‘Yazid’ - a son of and violence than it is associated with a taking the ball past opposition player after he was on the ball. It was how he knew the Algerian immigrants, Smaïl and Malika, who rough-around-the-edges area containing opposition player with the elegance of a game. are originally from an inner beauty. figure skater the Kabylie port city However, it is an area Additionally, the streets tend to play by known as Béjaïa. full of youth and with Meanwhile, in addition to his technical different rules. Everyone wants the ball Hope is exactly youthfulness comes excellence, another part of his game that and they are prepared to take what they His parents left hope. evidently played a key role in making him want. So, in a sense, this also shows how Béjaïa in the early such a difficult player to dispossess, is, as the other prevailing element to his game 1950s, before the what Zidane Hope is exactly what mentioned, his determination. throughout his career - his determination - outbreak of the Zidane represents was born. Algerian War which for La Castellane. Despite being very good at holding onto saw the North represents He is the city’s most the ball and regularly using his frame to It’s clear that this street footballer African nation’s prosperous son. position himself between it and opposition background helped him to hone the National Liberation for La While he reached defenders, Zidane was never necessarily a dribbling side of his game but this also Front fight their the heights of global man of great strength. However, the way in shows us that in an environment in which French rulers to superstardom in spite which he played and used his body to hold every budding star wanted the ball and eventually gain Castellane. of the area in which onto the ball personified a will to not be there weren’t necessarily any rules to stop independence. he was brought up, thrown off course by any challenger. them from getting it, young Zidane was still his upbringing also provided the fuel for his capable of keeping it for prolonged periods Smaïl and Malike originally moved to Paris meteoric rise to greatness. This is the determination that we saw in and this is where his determination and but in the late 1960s, life led them to La The city provided Zidane with a stage far Zidane every time he stepped out onto the physicality, despite not being the world’s Castellane, which was originally built as a less glamorous than Le Stade de France, pitch. When in possession of the ball, he largest player, were created. neighbourhood for refugees of the Algerian where the legend would score twice to help was defiant in his belief that he was taking War that waged on from the mid-50s to the France overcome Brazil in the final of the it exactly where he wanted to regardless This allowed him to more than make up for early-60s, and quickly became home to 1998 FIFA World Cup but an arena where of any other player’s intentions and this not possessing all of the physical gifts in various families of North African origin, such the tools required to accomplish such a feat defiance was emboldened by the fact that the world and still saw him become a giant as the Zidanes. were developed - Place de la Tartane. oftentimes, he succeeded in doing just that. when running around the pitch. La Castellane, then, is a relatively modern In this La Castellane square, grass is This element to his game was undoubtedly That only tells part of the tale of how Zizou area and there is something very ‘mid-late concrete and gravel, while stands and mastered during his development came to be from Yazid of La Castellane. 20th century’ about its architecture. It’s supporters are cold and grey apartment throughout his playing career but it was born not necessarily an area of conventional blocks. in La Castellane. While technical ability and determination beauty. Some sights in Marseille, such as were heavily evident in Zidane’s game Le Palais Longchamp and its gardens, are One of the buildings surrounding this square The way he carried the ball is something that throughout his career, so too was the full of life and vibrance at first glance but La - the G building - became known as ‘the I is difficult to teach and, in Zidane’s case, he influence of his family. 8 9 Zidane’s career was not without elements of question is - could Zizou ever have existed controversy. His success led to him and his without the intense connection and love that heritage being heavily politicised during his he had for his family? I career and while he generally tried to not get I too involved in this, he always made it clear It was, indeed, far from a palace that Yazid exactly who he was and what he stood for, and his five siblings were raised. It was a ensuring that he never, ever forgot where he modest home which created a tight bond came from. between the family members. Zidane has made it clear throughout his It has always been made clear by the man career that he sees himself as a Kabyle from himself that the teachings of his father have La Castellane before he sees himself as made an immense impact on his life. Smaïl anyone or anything else, even a Frenchman, taught his son values that he had to learn which, it needs to be said, is something he the hard way as an immigrant who had to also holds immense pride over. work hard for everything he ever earned. Smaïl’s hard work after arriving in a new This way of identifying himself came from country allowed him and Malike to raise their his family, who he family with enough of has always seemingly everything they needed been very close to and to get by. protective of. This is A king evidenced by numerous As he passed these occasions throughout values down to Yazid, his his career in which his son then applied them to passion and temper got in his his own life.