The talk before the 1998 World Cup Final was all about Ronaldo and Brazil. Zinedine Zidane barely featured in the build-up. By the end of the night at the Stade de France, few people were talking about anyone else.
Zidane scored twice, both headers from corners and almost identical. The first came in the 27th minute, a bullet header. The second, in the 46th, was close to a carbon copy. France won 3-0 and lifted the World Cup for the first time, on home soil.
Brazil were the heavy favourites, but their preparations had been thrown into confusion by a mysterious crisis around Ronaldo before the match. Zidane took over the midfield and never gave it back. He was named Man of the Match and became a national hero overnight.
A playmaker who won it with his head
What sticks in the memory is the method. Zidane was a player of touch and vision, the kind of footballer who made the ball look light. In the biggest match of his career he won it with two headers from set pieces, the least glamorous way possible. His bald head meeting those corners became one of the most replayed images in World Cup history.
The man everyone expected to play a supporting role to Ronaldo took the lead part instead. France went from a nation that had never won the World Cup to champions in one evening, and the country has looked at Zidane differently ever since.
Tomorrow, number 6.
