Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane has explained why he was forced to wear the No. 5 jersey at Los Blancos when he signed for the club in 2001.
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The legendary Frenchman joined the Spanish giants from Juventus 21 years ago, in what was one of the world's most high-profile transfers at the time, before scoring the goal that secured his team the UEFA Champions League trophy in his debut season.
Zidane's left-footed volley in the final of the competition against Bayer Leverkusen is still regarded today as one of the great European goals, while his legacy in Madrid became even more iconic in his retirement.
Following his 227 appearances and 108 goal contributions as a player, Zidane went on to serve as the club's head coach over two terms, first between 2016 and 2018 and then between 2019 and 2021, amassing 11 trophies, including three European titles, in the process.
In a recent wide-ranging interview alongside eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi, the 1998 FIFA World Cup champion explained to the Argentine how he came to wear the No. 5 jersey during his six-year spell in the Spanish capital.
"It was kind of weird to see someone else with the No. 5, seeing a central midfielder with the No. 5 was weird.
"But do you know how that happened? Florentino (Perez), the president, didn't like players wearing high numbers like 25, 30, 35, he was from the old school.
"The No. 1 for the goalkeeper and then up to number 11, that's it.
"(Former Real player Manolo) Sanchis had the No. 5 and played in defence. He left and when I got there the president told me: 'Wouldn't you like to have a number from one to 10?'
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"I said 'yes' and picked the No.5 shirt because he didn't want me to have 25, 30, 35. He said: 'This is not football, this is American football', so in the end I got five."
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