Zinedine Zidane gave a spot of coaching to Indonesia's president as he began a 3-day visit in Indonesia to promote his sport to children.
JAKARTA: French football hero Zinedine Zidane gave a spot of coaching to Indonesia's president on Friday as he began a three-day visit in the world's fourth most populous nation to promote his sport to children.
Clad in a batik shirt, jeans and runners, the star helped President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono along with some of Indonesia's young players practise a few passes as they met in the gardens of the presidential palace.
"I'm sure I'm going to have great pleasure and a lot of fun here in Indonesia as this is my first visit," the 35-year-old told reporters. "People talked a lot about the kindness of Indonesian people and I can already see (it) in the eyes of the people since I arrived at the airport."
Turning to Yudhoyono he said, "I have a present for you Mr. President," before handing him two signed shirts and several soccer balls. The president said he hoped Zidane would "inspire" Indonesia's young football players. A motorcade for Zidane is reportedly planned through the normally traffic-snarled streets of Jakarta early on Sunday morning, when he will also meet the city's governor.
The footballer is also expected to hold a coaching clinic for children during his visit in his role as an ambassador for children's programmes for French company Groupe Danone. He will give a press briefing on Sunday. The former Real Madrid and Juventus midfielder won worldwide headlines when he was involved in a head-butting incident with Italy's Marco Materazzi during the final of the 2006 World Cup. He retired from professional football after the tournament.
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