By Ian Holyman
Zinedine Zidane has reiterated his desire to take on a coaching role, but has yet to decide on where he will begin life in the dug-out.
The former World Footballer of the Year, 40, has held a number of roles at Real Madrid since hanging up his boots after a five-year stint at the Spanish club in 2006. It had been widely reported that, having started to work towards obtaining his coaching badges, Zidane would take charge of one of Madrid’s youth teams next season, but the ex-French international told Canal Plus he is still considering where to begin the latest chapter of his career.
“I want to coach,” he said. “I’m studying to get the qualifications to be able to do it one day, but will it be at the end of the season or the start of next season? I don’t know what form it will take, or with which club. We’ll see, but I still haven’t decided, so no one can speak on my behalf.”
Meanwhile, former Madrid team-mate David Beckham has spoken about Zidane, naming the prodigiously-gifted playmaker as the best footballer he has featured alongside after the pair spent three years together at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“Zidane is the best player I’ve ever played with or even seen,” said Beckham, reunited with ‘Zizou’ at one of their sponsors’ shops on Paris’ Champs-Elysees on Thursday before embarking on a number of media engagements with the French superstar. “He’s a gentleman, and to be here with him is very special. For me, he’s the best man and best player I’ve met.”
