Zidane at the Pinnacle of his Art
Zizou (as he is often called) has been appointed coach of the most prestigious soccer club in the world. This is an unparalleled honor he seems to wear with pride, all the more reason he is quite capable of taking the performance of the team to a higher level. He has both the capacity and magnanimity to leave another unforgettable imprint in the annals of the beautiful game. I have no doubt that the squad will respond to his call. Moreover, the appointment will endear him to many people all over the world, especially to those like him who come from the banlieu nord of Marseille. A shy man, Zidane has an almost superstitious conceit of his talent that ranks high up there with that of Pelé, Maradona, George Best, to name but a few of the most extraordinary players. One can only marvel at the quiet but determined steps he has taken to prove himself to those who think that people like him–the son of an Algerian immigrant–are no good unless you exceed all expectations as Zizou has done. We still recall how the French hailed down oaths that he was French through and through. Some went so far as to suggest he deserves an honorary place in the Panthéon. The claim came when France won the World Cup in 1998, precisely because of the then mestizo team that included Zizou who scored the only two goals of the game. That night the banners on the Champs Élysées read ‘Zizou for President.’
Zidane has been named coach of REAL Madrid at a time when xenophobia and racism (the case of the refugees comes to mind) and Islamism are rife in the world; a world where the likes of Donald Trump (a deranged fellow to say the least) runs for president and Denmark votes a law that strips refugees of their most precious belonging in order to pay for their files to be processed. The world today is no place for those who sit on the margin waiting for any bread crumbs to fall off whatever table so that they can eat the scraps and lefts overs. Zidane knows this bitter reality in that his parents came from the perphery and had to wait for a very long time to ‘belong’ to a society that has yet to face its past of genocide. I am thinking of the ‘savage war of peace’ that led Algeria to gain its independence.
That Zidane chose to live in Spain is no accident. It is interesting to note how he hardly ever gives interviews or appears on television shows in France as if he is conveying a message to the country where he was born and where his parents still live. ‘I cannot love thee, dear France,’ he seems to be saying. ‘Or if I do, it is going to be from a distance.’ For now, though, he upholds his shining honors compact upon him. I have no doubt that he, like the squad he leads, will be the fountain of inspiration and entertainment for many days to come.
The task to train a team that hardly keeps a coach for more than a year will not be easy. However, what Zidane has to his advantage is that he knows the players pretty well, at times he even trains and works out with them for hours. In addition, he really has nothing to lose. His quiet temper and steely determination will make the difference in a sport where no coach ever, in Europe in particular, is of sauvageon descent. They are all ‘white.’ Whether he will sail at great heights remains to be seen. What is certain is that he has already risen to an exalted level. All that can be said now is: ‘Let him soar the air over the Bernabéu stadium, exalted in feeling and elated in high spirits.