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3 weeks ago
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In the first leg of the Champions League semi-final in 1998, Juventus beat AS Monaco 4-1 and Zinédine Zidane fully contributed to the ordeal experienced by Fabien Barthez.
Zinedine Zidane and Alessandro Del Piero recently got together to launch a collection of adidas jerseys and the two former Juventus players certainly remember their explosive partnership at the Bianconeri. The French playmaker, who arrived in Piedmont in 1996, won two Serie A titles in 1997 and 1998 and also lost two Champions League finals in the same years, against Borussia Dortmund (1-3) and then Real Madrid (0-1). The Ballon d’Or 98 went to the Casa Blanca in 2001…
During its glorious run in the Champions League, Juve notably crushed AS Monaco in the semi-final first leg on 1 April 1998 at the Stadio delle Alpi. The club from the Principality had caused a surprise by knocking out Manchester United in the previous round. A nightmare evening for Fabien Barthez in Turin! Del Piero opened the scoring with a magnificent free-kick (34th). Costinha (known as Da Costa during his time in France) equalised (44th), but “Zizou” escaped in the area only to be brought down by Barthez. Penalty converted by Del Piero (45th), who then scored a hat-trick thanks to another penalty kick (62nd).
Zidane concludes the offensive festival
Monaco tried to reduce the gap, with the entry of Thierry Henry (67th) and Stéphane Carnot (74th) to feed David Trezeguet, but Juventus of Didier Deschamps and Edgar Davids in midfield finally won 4-1 thanks to Zidane at the end of the match. Coming out of a one-two with Del Piero, the number 21 of the Old Lady resisted the return of Philippe Christanval to adjust Barthez with a shot from the edge of the area (88th).
In the return match at Louis-II, Nicola Amoruso (15th) and Alessandro Del Piero (74th) made Fabien Barthez’s net tremble and Jean Tigana’s Monegasques, thanks to Philippe Léonard, Thierry Henry and Robert Spehar in the 83rd minute, snatched an insufficient 3-2 victory. Barthez, Deschamps, Zidane, Henry, Trezeguet, as well as Martin Djetou (finally sidelined by Aimé Jacquet) all found themselves at Clairefontaine a few months later to prepare for the 98 World Cup in France.
Written by:
Manu Tournoux is a passionate and knowledgeable football enthusiast with a special focus on French football. Born and raised in France, Manu discovered his love for the beautiful game at a young age and developed a deep understanding of the ins and outs of "Le Championnat." His French roots and extensive experience in football journalism have made him an invaluable asset to the French Football Weekly team.
 
 As an author for the website, Manu's expertise includes not only in-depth analysis of Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 matches but also insightful profiles of up-and-coming talents, detailed transfer news, and engaging coverage of the French national team. His captivating writing style and undeniable passion for the game have earned him a loyal following among our readers.
 
 When he's not crafting engaging articles for French Football Weekly, Manu enjoys attending live matches whenever he can, exploring football culture in various French cities, and engaging in spirited debates with fellow fans. Feel free to follow Manu on Twitter and interact with him as he shares his expert opinions, insights, and love for French football.
