Zinédine Zidane, Marseille’s favourite son who never wore OM colours | OneFootball

Zinédine Zidane remains Marseille’s favourite son despite never wearing OM colours, his bond running from the quartiers nord to the Vélodrome.

According to L'Équipe, it began on place de la Tartane with La Castellane friends, then Saint-Henri and Septèmes, before Cannes gave Yazid his first pro Vélodrome outing at 18.

On 25 April 1992 Basile Boli denied him as OM won 2-0, Deschamps scored, it was Papin’s farewell and Marseille’s fourth straight title.

In September 1993, with Bordeaux, Zidane was sent off for punching Marcel Desailly.

On 26 November 1993 he returned with Real Madrid, OM lost 1-2, jeered at first then applauded after his part in Ronaldo’s winner.

In 1998 he hit one of his finest France goals at the Vélodrome against Norway, then at the World Cup he set up Christophe Dugarry for France’s first.

On 30 August 1998 50,000 on La Canebière and the Vieux-Port hailed Deschamps, Blanc, Dugarry, Pirès and above all Zidane, the only one never to wear OM’s shirt.

From 1998 to 2007 his sponsor’s giant image on the Corniche Kennedy, the Zidane wall, moved from black and white to a colour portrait he chose in 2001.

In March 2007 he played for the first time since the Berlin red card, a gala between friends of Zidane and Ronaldo.

His latest visit was last December for an event run by his nephew Ryad and Gerard Piqué. Next time, it will be as a national coach, the quartiers nord still in his heart.

Source: L'Équipe

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”