French great Zinedine Zidane has expressed his enthusiasm about working more closely with the first-team squad at Real Madrid.

The three-time FIFA World Player of the Year, who played for Real for five years between 2001 and 2006, will today start work as an advisor to president Florentino Perez on first-team affairs.

“I’m happy to be able to get closer to the club and to the team,” Zidane said in an interview with Real’s official website published yesterday. “It’s a role that’s taking shape gradually.

“I’ll be closer to the team. I’ll travel with the squad for Champions League matches. Day-to-day I’ll be with the team at Valdebebas (Real’s training centre).

“It’s four years since I left football (as a player) and it’s the right time to seize another opportunity to be closer to what I like, which is football.”

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