From Future Star to FC ICON: How elegant Zinedine Zidane mesmerized fans, opponents and teammates alike - and wrote himself into the history books with club and country

Zinedine Zidane was grace personified. Technically, he was a master of the ball, a manipulator of time and space unlike any we saw before or since. And physically? He was imposing, strong, quick. When he got that ball, there was little anyone could do to get it from him.

But, before he was France's icon, he was the son of Algerian immigrants in Marseille. Before he was arguably the most skillful player we've ever seen kick a ball, he was a rising star at Cannes in need of guidance on and off the field. Before he was an ICON, he was a Future Star, and he lived up to every bit of potential he had in him.

By the time it was all over, Zidane stepped away from the game as one of the most impactful technicians the footballing world has ever seen. If he wasn't your favorite player, he was definitely your favorite player's favorite player. The generation that grew up watching him run games saw him as football personified, the perfect combination of everything that makes someone excel at this game.

To coincide with the release of his Future Stars Icon card on EA Sports FC24 on PlayStation 5, GOAL takes a look back at Zidane's journey and how he went from Future Star to ICON...