BOBINHO

🚨 Zinedine Zidane on Michael Olise’s performance against Belgium: “Michael was sitting on the bench wrapped in a blanket while we were losing 1–0. I looked at him a few times. Nothing. No frustration. No walking up and down. No looking at me every thirty seconds hoping I would notice him. Just sitting there like somebody waiting for a bus. At half-time, I walked past him and said, ‘Michael, are you comfortable?’ He said, ‘Yes, coach.’ I said, ‘That’s actually beginning to annoy me.’ He laughed. I told him, ‘We are losing.’ He said, ‘I know.’ ‘And you’re sitting here looking like you’re watching television.’ He looked at me and said, ‘You haven’t asked me to do anything yet.’ That answer stayed in my head. Because some players spend the whole game trying to convince the manager that they are ready. Michael behaves like the manager already knows. Around the 55th minute I told him and Rayan Cherki to get ready. Michael finally removed the blanket. I said, ‘Ah, so you do remember you’re a footballer.’ He smiled. Before he went on, I stopped him. I said, ‘Michael, we don’t need you to rescue France. Just change the game.’ He looked at the scoreboard, looked back at me and said, ‘What’s the difference?’ I should have known then. He comes on in the 60th minute. Seventeen minutes later, Désiré equalises. Then Michael creates Rayan’s goal. 2–1. I’m celebrating and Michael is already walking back towards the halfway line. That is something about him that makes me laugh. Sometimes he produces something ridiculous and celebrates like somebody has just completed paperwork. Then the 88th minute comes. Michael scores. 3–1. Now I’m thinking, ‘Good. Finished.’ Apparently Michael wasn’t. Three minutes later he scores again. 4–1. I looked towards the bench and one of my assistants said, ‘You could have brought him on earlier.’ I said, ‘That is exactly why I didn’t.’ He looked confused. I told him, ‘If I bring him on at half-time, perhaps Belgium have enough time to understand what is happening.’ After the match Michael walked past me. I said, ‘Two goals, one assist in thirty minutes.’ He nodded. That was it. So I asked him, ‘Do you have anything to say?’ He said, ‘You told me to change the game.’ I said, ‘Yes, Michael. I didn’t tell you to destroy their evening.’ He smiled and started walking away. Then I remembered our conversation from half-time. I shouted, ‘Michael.’ He turned around. I said, ‘Was the blanket comfortable?’ He said, ‘Very.’ I told him, ‘Good. Keep it. At this rate, we might need it again.’ People will see two goals and an assist and start talking about the Ballon d’Or. They’ll compare him with Yamal, Saka, whoever they want. I see something slightly different. I see a player who can sit there for an hour while his country is losing and somehow look like the least worried person in the stadium. Not because he doesn’t care. Because he believes that if his moment comes, he will do something with it. There is a difference between arrogance and certainty. Michael has that strange certainty. He doesn’t need ninety minutes to convince you he was important to the match. Tonight France were losing when he stood up from that bench. Thirty minutes later, Belgium probably wished I had left him under the blanket.”