Zidane relishes one last challenge

Posted at 9:28 AM, April 27, 2006

Zinedine Zidane said Wednesday he decided to retire because he's not playing up to his standards, but promised he will be "highly motivated" for the World Cup finals.

"It's something I've been thinking about, it's not a decision of one day," the France midfielder told a packed news conference at Real Madrid's training ground.

"Besides, I want Real Madrid to make plans next season and look for an alternative if they want to do so."

The three-time FIFA world player of the year had announced his decision to quit after the finals, in Germany, on Tuesday.

"In these last two years I haven't felt at ease, I haven't played the way I wanted," Zidane said Wednesday. "I'm not 25 anymore. Each day it's more difficult, I have more pains.

"I don't want to be here just for the sake of being here. I've always done everything to win and I'm not doing that lately."

Zidane, who had another year to run on his contract with Madrid, will turn 34 during the June 9-July 9 World Cup.

"To finish my career after the World Cup is something very special," he said.

"I'm going to be highly motivated, I just hope I don't have any physical problems. It's going to be really difficult to win the World Cup but we have a great team."

Zidane's final appearance for Real Madrid is likely to be the team's game at Sevilla on May 13 or 14.

He said he would bid farewell to Madrid fans at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium the previous week in a home game against Villarreal.

The midfield playmaker is suspended for Madrid's next game, against Osasuna , on Sunday.

Zidane said he would like to work with Real Madrid's junior teams after his retirement and also help promote the image of the club worldwide.

"I don't know if we can use the word 'ambassador' but it's something I would like to do," he said. "I'll stay and live in Spain." Zidane, voted FIFA's world player of the year in 1998, 2000 and 2003, has delighted spectators for 16 years with his silky midfield skills, extraordinary ball control and timing.

He started his career with Cannes before moving in 1992 to Bordeaux, which he helped to the UEFA Cup final in his last season.

Zidane made the first of 99 international appearances for France on Aug. 17, 1994, coming on as a substitute against the Czech Republic and scoring both goals to salvage a 2-2 draw.

His transfer to Juventus in 1996 elevated him into Europe's soccer elite. He won Italian league winners medals in his first two seasons.

"I've spent five years at Juventus and five at Real Madrid, the two most important clubs in the world," Zidane said.

Zidane moved to Madrid in 2001 for a world record transfer fee of euro53 million ($65m) and his perfectly timed volley for the winning goal against Bayer Leverkusen brought Madrid its record ninth European Champions Cup.

The following year, he helped the team win the Spanish league for a record 29th time.

Since then, Zidane has been unable to prevent Madrid's slide. Under five different coaches, the club has failed to win a trophy in the last three seasons, its worst streak since the early 1950s.

"We lost a lot when we lost Claude Makelele, he had done an awful lot in this club," Zidane said, referring to the French midfielder who was sold to Chelsea following a salary disagreement.

Zidane, who has scored 28 international goals, retired from international soccer after the 2004 European championships but returned a year later to boost the team's successful bid to qualify for this year's finals in Germany.

He will join Didier Deschamps, Lilian Thuram and Marcel Desailly as the only men to play 100 games for France if he stays fit.

He will achieve the milestone at home in a World Cup warmup against Mexico on May 27.

Zidane scored with two headers in a 3-0 win in the 1998 World Cup final against Brazil at the Stade de France. In 2000, he scored on a penalty as France beat Portugal in the semifinals en route to its second European title.

Zidane carried an injury at the 2002 World Cup as France became the first defending champion to be eliminated in the first round.

"Football has given me everything," Zidane said.