Luca Zidane
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Starting goalkeeper for Algeria
Zidane is set to head to his first World Cup as Algeria's first-choice goalkeeper.
Analysis: Zidane heads to his first World Cup carrying a sharp contrast between his club and international form. At Granada in the Spanish second division he endured a difficult season, keeping just eight clean sheets and conceding 33 goals across 26 appearances, numbers that reflect both the limitations of the side in front of him and a year that offered little in the way of confidence-building performances. His national team form tells an entirely different story. Earlier this year he delivered a brilliant AFCON campaign, keeping three clean sheets in four appearances for Algeria, and that form carried directly into the pre-tournament window where he posted three consecutive clean sheets in friendlies, including an impressive six-save performance against the Netherlands. He will look to carry that momentum into a tough group that includes Argentina and Austria, fixtures that make clean sheets unlikely but could see his save numbers climb significantly.
Brilliant in return to action
Zidane (jaw) made six saves and kept a clean sheet during a 90-minute appearance in Wednesday's international friendly against Netherlands.
Analysis: Zidane helped his national team to an encouraging result, with his comeback from injury giving Algeria a boost in terms of shot-stopping quality. He's projected to start over Oussama Benbot and Melvin Mastil in most games of the international tournament. After averaging 2.8 saves and 1.3 goals allowed per game over 26 La Liga 2 starts last season with Granada, the 28-year-old keeper could have a good opportunity to test his skills as he'll be facing strong offensive units in the World Cup group-stage clashes with Argentina and Austria, while he may have more reasonable clean-sheet options versus Jordan.
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