By Andrew Wychrij
The ex-Real Madrid midfielder has revealed that he will be cheering on the Ligue 1 leaders in the Champions League encounter as he sees the game as a positive for French football.
Zinedine Zidane has thrown his support behind Paris Saint-Germain in their attempts to overcome Barcelona in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Blaise Matuidi’s stoppage-time effort allowed PSG to snatch a 2-2 draw at Parc des Princes last week and the Real Madrid sporting director believes that les Parisiens have an excellent chance of causing an upset in the leg in Catalunya.
“I will be supporting Paris. I am behind the French club,” the 40-year-old said in an interview with RMC Sport.
“This game is positive for French football. Even though I am from Marseille it is rather nice to see Paris to rub shoulders with Barcelona.
“I see it being hard for them. But I think the fact that they scored late in the game means it will be interesting. It will be difficult at Camp Nou but this is a team that is capable of worrying Barca.”
Zidane, who scored 46 times in 210 appearances for Madrid, also passed comment on another Frenchman at the Liga outfit, defending the form of Karim Benzema.
“What a player needs when he is struggling a bit is to have support,” los Blancos’ director said of the forward.
“He is one of the best players in the France team. I can understand people who come to the stadium [and boo] as they want to see their striker scoring goals. But I would say that we must support the players. He has great qualities, he will emerge from this difficult situation.
“And the France team will benefit soon. I also had difficulties in the France team. It happens in a career to have bad runs. Fortunately, however, he can bounce back.”
