Saturday, Jul 11, 2015
Dubai: French legend Zinedine Zidane was in awe of the skills displayed by UAE footballer Omar Abdul Rahman during their friendly futsal match played on the sidelines of the Third Nad Al Sheba (NAS) Ramadan Sports Tournament that concluded late on Friday.
The Frenchman led his Zidane and Friends team to a 2-0 win over NAS Friends in an exhibition match played prior to the futsal final held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman, Dubai Sports Council (DSC).
Zidane’s second son Luca, who plays as goalkeeper for the Real Madrid Under-17 side, opened the score in the fourth minute and the maestro himself prodded one home in the seventh minute to go 2-0 up into the break. With Michel Salgado and Edgar Davids marshalling the defence, the score remained the same after the second ten minutes.
“He [Omar Abdul Rahman] is one of the players who impressed me with his skills. He has a slick touch on the ball and he’s quick to sight players before making his passes. He can only improve from now on,” Zidane told Gulf News as he was whisked away by security after the futsal final.
Zidane was the star attraction on the final night of the three-week tournament that consisted of futsal, wheelchair basketball and volleyball competitions along with an archery contest, a 10km road run, a 70km road cycle race and padel tennis.
It was a delight to watch the former footballer of the year in action and the houseful crowd loved every moment. As he walked in Zizou received a thunderous ovation as Shaikh Hamdan joined him on court. The mobile phones were out, and each time Zidane touched the ball the crowd cheered. After playing the first half of ten minutes, Zizou was substituted and the nearby youth from the stands managed to get him towards them for some ‘selfie’ moments.
Finally when it was over, Zidane took time off to pose for some pictures with the players and officials present on the pitch. Then waving to the crowd he walked away to freshen up and return to watch the futsal final between Al Jokar and Fohood Jumeirah.
People in the know said that the French star normally commands a fee close to 150,000 Euros (Dh612,629) for a marquee appearance like Friday night’s. And after the final, the French international admitted that he would give the entire amount received to one of his charities of choice. “All of us can do something to make this world a better place. This money will be going to one of my charities,” he said.
By Alaric Gomes Senior Reporter
Gulf News 2015. All rights reserved.
