France Without Zidane in First Two Matches - 2002-05-27

The French national football team, the defending World Cup champions, suffered a heavy blow today upon learning that their playmaker, Zinedine Zidane, will miss the first two matches of the team due to injury. Zidane, the world's most expensive player, sustained a left thigh muscle injury during a friendly match on Sunday and is likely to miss France's opening game against Senegal on Friday, May 31, as well as the match on June 6 against Uruguay. Claude Simonet, the president of the French Football Federation, announced this news via Radio France to French football fans. Simonet stated that the results of the imaging on Zidane's leg indicate that he will most likely be unable to accompany the team for the two matches. The coach and medical staff of the French team have not yet commented on this matter, but a team spokesperson announced that they will issue a statement on Tuesday. Zinedine Zidane, a midfielder for France, became a national hero for the French after scoring two beautiful goals in the final match of the 1998 World Cup, leading France to a 3-0 victory over Brazil and securing the championship title. In 2001, he transferred from Juventus to Barcelona for a record-breaking fee of $64.45 million.