Real Madrid and France legend Zinedine Zidane named his greatest XI in world football – but there was one notable omission.
Zidane, in his own right, was one of the best midfielders of his generation. His impressive trophy haul of 13 major honours at club level and the 1998 World Cup triumph with France cemented his name into the history books of football.
Following his retirement from playing in 2006, he turned his hand to management.
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He took charge of Real Madrid ‘B’ in 2014. Two years later, in 2016, he stepped up to the first-team job and won three consecutive Champions League crowns with Los Blancos. He left in 2018 but returned a year later in 2019.
He guided Madrid to La Liga in 2020 before departing once again in 2021. Zidane has been without a managerial role since.
Way before his success as a manager, in 2014, Zidane named his best XI in the world at the time, as reported by Planet Football.
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He was Real Madrid’s reserve boss back then and went on to manage several of the players mentioned.
In goal, ‘Zizou’ went for former teammate Iker Casillas. Ahead of him, in defence, he went for a strong centre-back pairing of Pepe and Sergio Ramos with the Brazilian duo of Dani Alves and Marcelo on either flank.
Zidane has been particularly complimentary of Ramos. After the Spaniard’s 450th La Liga appearance in July 2020, he described Ramos as “unique”.
“He is an unrepeatable player,” Zidane told reporters.
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"He is unique, and we know what he transmits to everyone else. I’m happy for him for his goal because when it comes to shooting a penalty, he has a lot of confidence.”
In midfield, the Frenchman went for a strong duo of Luka Modric and Yaya Toure. And the attacking quartet he chose would have been enough to give most defenders nightmares. Zidane selected Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Karim Benzema.
In 2023, Zidane and Messi sat down together to reminisce about their careers in a YouTube video for Adidas.
It is safe to say Zidane is a Messi fan; he made this clear when asked to describe the Argentine.
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"No, it's only one word: magic," he admitted.
"Leo and I are not together every day, so today is a very important day for me because I can tell him how much I admire him."
Although Zidane only had 11 spaces to fill, the fact he left out Andres Iniesta may have come as a surprise to some given the Frenchman's previous praise for the Spaniard.
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Speaking in 2018, Zidane said Iniesta deserved to win the Ballon d'Or instead of Messi.
"It is difficult because if you like football, seeing a player like him leave is tough," he said, ahead of Iniesta's final appearance in El Clasico. "I don't think of him as a Barcelona player. I see him simply as a football player.
"I've come across him two or three times and he is a charming, very reserved man and I like players who can do everything on the field but are that calm off it.
"I only have good words for him, admiration for his football and I wish him the best as a player for the future but above all, as a person."
He added: "We're talking about someone who made everyone dream and he deserved to win the Ballon d'Or, especially in the year he won the World Cup. It was clear then that he deserved it."
There is a clear respect between the pair, which was apparent following Iniesta’s retirement announcement earlier this month.
Last week, Zidane posted a photograph of himself and Iniesta to Instagram with the caption: “We love football because of these kind of players!”
Of course, if Zidane was asked to name his world XI now, it would likely feature several new names.
Topics: Barcelona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Real Madrid, Sergio Ramos, Zinedine Zidane
Luke Davies