Enzo Zidane has reportedly ended his professional career at the age of 29 as he has been without a club since 2023.
The son of football legend Zinedine rose through the ranks at Real Madrid, where he played under the 1998 World Cup winners.
2
His only appearance for Los Blancos’ first team came in the Copa del Rey in the 2016/17 season, where he scored a goal on his debut.
His appearance in the 6-1 win against Cultural Leonesa was also the game in which Martin Odegaard made his debut for the club.
And their careers took completely different paths: Odegaard became captain of Arsenal FC and is now one of the best playmakers in Europe.
Enzo, on the other hand, was unable to reach the heights expected of him and the midfielder became a wandering bird throughout Europe.
Enzo moved between different clubs and played in the top three leagues in Spain. He also played in the top divisions in Switzerland and Portugal and in Ligue 2 in France.
In the 2022/23 season, he played for Spanish third division club Fuenlabrada, where he made 29 appearances in all competitions.
His last game was in May 2023. News agency AS reported that after more than a year off, Enzo has now decided to end his football career.
It is said that he made this decision out of “boredom” because he could not find a new club.
The report goes on to say that the former Alaves player’s attention will now turn to his family and his three daughters with his wife Karen.
In an interview with Marca in 2018, Enzo spoke about the pressure of being the son of one of the greatest footballers of all time.
2
He said: “I’ve had this since I was little and it will always be this way. It’s not going to change, but I’m trying to move on from it and focus on being the best Enzo I can be.”
“People compare you, criticize you, want more from you and say you are there because you are someone’s son.
“Others are criticized for other things, but I try not to think about it.
“The most important thing is that my family is proud of me. I only think about growing up as Enzo and nothing else.”
“I was 22 years old (in Madrid), after coming through the academy and learning from the first team, my goal was to try other things and grow as a footballer,” he continued.
“Madrid is the best team in the world and it is very difficult to find a place there, but that is the life of a player.”
“I wanted to leave to experience beautiful moments somewhere else and have the same dream.”
Enzo has three younger brothers who play football – Luca, Theo and Elyaz – who play for Granada, Cordoba and Real Betis.