Zinedine Zidane has consistently shown his respect for the English midfield players through his admiration for Paul Scholes and Steven Gerrard as well as Frank Lampard before they retired. Zidane pushed Real Madrid president Florentino Perez to acquire Gerrard because he wanted to construct an elite midfield group in 2004. Before Zinedine Zidane arrived at Real Madrid the club made a surprising move by acquiring Steve McManaman through a free transfer in 1999. While demonstrating exceptional form for Madrid McManaman was shocked when Sven-Göran Eriksson eliminated him from England’s squad in 2001.
Zidane Questions McManaman’s Exclusion From England Squad
During his 2002 Sky Sports interview Zinedine Zidane expressed shock about the exclusion of Steve McManaman from England’s team selection. According to Zidane he found it unbelievable Stockholm would overlook such a high-quality player. The injury to David Beckham led Zidane to believe Steve McManaman ought to start games instead of filling the substitute spot. Real Madrid saw McManaman succeed in multiple positions yet he failed to win places on the England national team. Zidane stated that if Eriksson offered McManaman the chance he deserves then the player would prove beyond doubt that he belonged with England from the beginning.
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Zidane Criticizes England’s Decision To Exclude McManaman
Zidane expressed his clear view that England should not have excluded McManaman from the team since it resulted in both team and player setback according to him. England will eventually understand the mistake of not selecting McManaman for the World Cup team. During his professional club career McManaman achieved worldwide success by winning seven major titles with Real Madrid particularly two Champions League championships. The match against Greece in 2001 marked the last time McManaman would represent his country before Sven-Goran Eriksson chose to eliminate him through a written communication. In an interview with BBC 5 Live McManaman expressed his disappointment with the reasons used for leaving him out of the team. The news of my no selection did not anger me because I already saw it coming.
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