Why Zinedine Zidane chose no.5 jersey over no. 21 at Real Madrid?

When Zinedine Zidane made his move to Real Madrid in 2001, the player opted for quite an unexpected jersey to wear at Bernabeu. After five years rocking the no. 21 shirt at Juventus, he took the no. 5. Why the change?

In an exclusive interview with Adidas, the Frenchman explained:

"Florentino [Perez] didn't like the big numbers, he said '20, 30 - that's not football, that's American football'. I said 'Alright, I'll take the five then."

Zidane inherited the jersey from Manolo Sanchis - a sweeper who defended the club colours for 18 years before hanging up his boots in the summer of 2001, right before Zizou's arrival - and instantly made it iconic.

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