Zidane Launches Late Title Charge
Friday 8th June 2001
Juventus star Zinedine Zidane has urged his team-mates to ignore the rumours linking him with a move to Real Madrid and coach Marcello Lippi with a return to the club. Juve, who play Vicenza on Sunday, are four points behind leaders Roma with two games to go. "We can still win the title but we have to focus on the football," he said.
Real Madrid have said that they are prepared to present Juventus and Zidane with a blank cheque in order for the France international to sign for the Spanish club.
But Zidane has so far refused to talk about a transfer and on Friday said that he is not interested to talk about Real Madrid at the moment.
Juventus are four points behind leaders Roma with two games to go and the Frenchman believes that the club can still win the Scudetto if they focus on their football.
He said: "To have this kind of club [Real Madrid] looking for me is a pleasure and an honour. But now we have to be focused on our next match.
"In this situation it is be more of a mental and physical battle," he added.
"This year I'm happy with what I've done. Obviously I'm not happy about results, but there's no way to change the past.
Zidane, the son of immigrant Algerian parents, was born in Marseille. His ability was recognised at an early age and Bordeaux signed him up. In 1996 he joined Italian giants Juventus.
During recent years in Serie A, regular bursts of his brilliance have shown his ability to unlock the best defences in football. His domestic honours include two Italian titles and the Uefa Cup.
The year 2000 ended with mixed fortunes for Zidane. First, he was sent off in successive Champions' League games, the second time for head-butting Hamburg's Jochen Kientz, then he received the Fifa World Player of the Year award for the second time. In January 2001, however, he declared his intention to stay at Juve for the rest of his career.
