When Zinedine Zidane became a superstar

Football is an industry both fuelled and documented by famous quotes. Yet even in this age of misinformation, it's still surprising how some of its most memorable lines have been wilfully reinterpreted or were wholesale fabrications from the beginning.

Once they're out there, woven into the game's rich tapestry, our human nature can't help but open us up to the possibility of belief. "Something magical happens once it's put down on paper," Eugene Jerome said of the written word in Biloxi Blues. "They figure no one would have gone to the trouble of writing it down if it wasn't true."

One such quote has been attached to its attributed source like a faithful dog since 1995, becoming the catch-all reference that highlights the insularity of English football. Blackburn Rovers were the champions of England, with Kenny Dalglish making provisional plans to bolster their squad in defence of their title.

He approached his chairman Jack Walker with a request to sign a gifted but relatively unknown midfielder from France, available for buttons if Blackburn moved quickly. Walker dismissed the idea, with a riposte that's veracity has been open to debate ever since. "Why do you want to sign Zidane," he allegedly told Dalglish, "when we have Tim Sherwood?"

Doubts about Zinedine Zidane in his formative years weren't solely confined to people in England who hadn't seen him. The pantheon of the greatest players the game has seen is littered with those who were teenage prodigies, and few of the true greats blossomed as late as Zidane.

It was the scout Jean Varraud that took him off the tough La Castellane council estate in Marseille's 15th arrondissement for a six-week trial with AS Cannes when he was 15. Zidane did enough to get signed as a professional and made his full debut a year later in 1989, an appearance that earned him a tasty bonus of 5,000 francs.

While the club was trying to incentivise Zidane into unleashing the full array of his talent, they also needed him to fill out his wiry teenage frame. That would take a little time.

"At 18, he wasn't the great Zidane, no," recalled his Cannes team-mate Luis Fernandez, a former cornerstone of France's Carre Magique in the 1980s. "He wasn't strong physically, but technically he was superb.

"He had sublime skill, a superb touch, and all the moves. On a technical level, he was much more advanced than the rest of the team."

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It wasn't until Boro Primorac took over as manager in 1990 that Cannes started to put their faith in that ability. Zidane became a regular under him in the 1990-91 season, establishing a place in midfield alongside Fernandez.

His first goal in professional football, a deft lob against Nantes, was rewarded with a gift of a new Renault Clio from the club President. It was one performance that season in particular that hinted at what would eventually follow when Zidane stood out as Cannes beat French champions Marseille 1-0 in the Stade Vélodrome. He had been a huge boyhood fan of his local side and had been regularly heading back to watch them play after leaving the city.

Cannes finished fourth in Ligue 1 in 1990-91, earning a UEFA Cup spot and the club's first ever games in European competition. It was an adventure that came at a cost. Cannes were knocked out in the third round the following year, during which Zidane had to fulfil his military service.

The European distraction contributed to a disastrous season for Cannes, who finished 19th in the table and were relegated. The expectation that summer was that their most saleable asset would be offloaded to Marseille, the incumbent French champions and the team Zidane had always supported, but the homecoming never materialised. Marseille's coach, Raymond Goethals, passed on Zidane because he was "too slow".

Instead, Zidane hopped on an elevator going in the opposite direction to Cannes. FC Girondins de Bordeaux had been a dominant force in French football in the mid-80s, winning three championships in four seasons, before a financial scandal overwhelmed the club and saw them automatically relegated to Ligue 2 in 1991.

Now, they were back after winning promotion at the first attempt and had already plundered the demoted Cannes squad for Eric Guerit and Jean-Francois Daniel. When Marseille unexpectedly baulked at signing Zidane, Bordeaux coach Rolland Courbis took a low-priced punt on him instead.

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Courbis was also from Marseille and formed a paternalistic bond with his new player that smoothed the transition into life in the French south-west. While Zidane's family and friends referred to him by his middle name of Yazid, it was Courbis that coined the nickname that would become famous - Zizou.

Bordeaux quickly realised that they had a serious talent on their hands, albeit a sensitive one. Zidane cut a broodingly intense figure, who took in the world with the deep, piercing eyes of a people watcher. Coaxing him out of that shell was a long-term project.

"He was a player who appeared an introvert," said Bordeaux's technical coach Pierrot Labat. "In fact, he doubted himself. I attempted to instil confidence into him.

"It was one of the first times - the first time in fact - that I applied psychology in order to provide him with the self-belief that allowed him to produce his full potential."

The scope of that potential was huge. Zidane possessed an astonishing repertoire of close-quarter skills. Drag-backs, Cruyff turns, stepovers, back heels, [i]roulette's[i], and nutmegs could all be deployed at will, with a featherlight sense of touch and timing.

He was also deceptively quick—deceptive enough for Goethals to miss it, certainly—and his balance when in possession or running with the ball was freakish given his stature. At Bordeaux, his frame completed its journey from gangly adolescence to manhood.

"Six foot two (1.88 metres), Zidane..." recalled Jonathan Woodgate of clapping eyes on him at Real Madrid. "I couldn't believe it when I saw him. I was like 'how big are you?' Because I didn't think that.

"His style across the pitch and the way that he moved, he was on a different level from anyone I've ever played with, but really slim. Twelve and a half stone (85kg), maybe, tops."

Confidence slowly started to course through that body. A higher calibre of team-mate also helped, for his sense of belonging as well as his development as a player.

In his first season, Zidane struck up an instant, almost telepathic relationship with striker Christophe Dugarry—along with marauding fullback Bixente Lizarazu, they formed the bedrock of the team.

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The club finished fourth in Ligue 1 in 1992-93 and again in 1993-94. At the end of the latter season, aged 22, Zidane was given the 'Best Hope' award as the most promising young player in France.

That prompted a call-up to the national team, but only as a replacement. The French coach Aimé Jacquet was trying to build a new side out of the wreckage of the squad that had failed to qualify for that summer's World Cup. It was a pressing concern, with France hosting the next one.

On August 17, 1994, they played the Czech Republic in a friendly in Bordeaux. When Youri Djorkaeff pulled out of the squad, local boy Zidane was called up to take his place but only made the bench. Jacquet's reservations about Zidane were not just down to self-belief, but also self-indulgence.

"Zidane was out of the ordinary—exceptional—but he didn't have his influence yet," said Jacquet. "He hadn't yet got his personal aura. He played football to enjoy himself; he had exceptional skills, though he wasn't much of a team player.

"But when he came into the French squad, he joined other talents, who took him on to an international level." At the Parc Lescure that night, Zidane took it on himself to level up an international.

France were two goals behind when Zidane replaced the Auxerre playmaker Corentin Martins in the 63rd minute. With the game drifting towards full time, Laurent Blanc sent a long, sweeping low pass to Zidane, who let the pace of the ball beat the lunging challenge of his marker.

He then went through the Czech defence with an ease that was almost contemptuous. A quick stepover left Lubos Kubik in his wake before he shuffled the ball quickly between his feet to avoid an attempted tackle by Tomas Repka. From 25 yards out, Zidane then lashed a left-footed drive past Petr Kouba into the far corner.

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It would've been a stunning goal at any stage of a career, let alone an international debut, and he wasn't even done. Three minutes later, it was 2-2. In a precursor to the greatest night in the history of French football, Zidane powered in a near-post header from a corner.

The Parc Lescure erupted, and France had blagged the unlikeliest of draws. As the camera cut to the coaching staff on the France bench, it caught a wonderful moment, as they all smiled incredulously and processed a uniform realisation: we've got one here.

In the television interview afterwards, Zidane said it was the first time at either youth or professional level where he'd scored twice in a game.

"I think of my wife, who is just two months pregnant," he added. "I dedicate my match and my two goals to her." Enzo, named after the Marseille and Uruguay great Enzo Francescoli, would enter the world the following spring. Another gestation was underway; Zidane was on a path to becoming the fulcrum of France's new team.

Martins had been one contender for that role but played just five more times for France thereafter. Manchester United's Double-winning inspiration Eric Cantona was the incumbent and had thrown his hands in the air when the equaliser went in. He'd effectively just celebrated a future that didn't have him in it.

Zidane needed to take his game to a different level with Bordeaux to keep his development accelerating.