Luca Zidane, the 20-year-old son of Real Madrid manager Zinedine, made his debut in the all-white strip of Real Madrid last night but what should have been a joyous occasion for him was marked with an unfortunate incident.
Zidane the elder had named his young son between the sticks in place of his regular No.1 Keylor Navas, allowing the Costa Rican a rest as he builds his side toward Saturday’s Champions League final against Liverpool in Kiev.
It was all going well for young Luca, with his side leading 2-0 at the half, when he made a spectacular save from a free-kick to keep himself on course for a clean sheet.
But all that seemed to fall apart a touch when, first, he conceded a goal that could scarcely be blamed on him and then - crucially - a second which could.
A lofted ball from the Villareal midfield caught Marcelo unawares and sent Roger Martinez haring in behind Real’s defence, at which point Zidane came off his line and made a poor, flapping effort at retrieving the ball.
Martinez zipped around him and slotted home, levelling the game up at 2-2 and the game finished on that score. That leaves Madrid unlikely to secure second spot in La Liga, with their cross-town rivals Atletico two points ahead with a game in hand.
A disappointing domestic campaign for a side used to at least being close to a league title every year, and only a record third consecutive Champions League could savour what’s been an underwhelming campaign for Zidane’s side.
Watch the young ‘keeper’ error below.
