Zinedine Zidane

Portait of Zidane (twitter.com)

My hero is Zinedine Zidane, who was born on the 23 of June 1972 in Marseilles. He is an Algerian and French retired footballer. In the past he played as an attacking midfielder for the French National team first in Cannes, then Bordeaux, Juventus and finally the Real Madrid.

Zidane was named the best European footballer for his ball control and technique. He's nicknamed "Zizou" and is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history. His 2001 transfer from Juventus to Real Madrid set a world record fee of an equivalent 75 million. On the international stage with France, Zidane won the 1998 World Cup, scoring twice in the final, and Euro 2000 where he was named player of the tournament. The triumph of The World Cup 1998 made him a hero for France, that's why he received the Legion d'honneur in 1998.

Zidane was the Fifa World Player of the year three times and the Golden Ball once. He received his golden ball for the World Cup 2006, but in the final against Italy was infamously sent off for headbutting Materazzi in the chest following insults in the chest. Before the World Cup, he announced he would retire at the end of the tournament. After retirement, Zidane became an assistant coach at Real Madrid for the season 2013-2014.

Now, the former Real Madrid player leads the team and takes a great victories this season end. For me this player is a legend of football, he is an example to follow, that's what I admire. He was one of the first players of Arab descent to play on the French team, which was a handicap for him. But despite his Algerian origins he has managed to establish a significant career. In addition, his country (Algeria) is the same as mine.