Mustapha Zitouni
Mustapha Zitouni ( before 1962 )
Mustapha Zitouni (Arabic: مصطفى زيتوني, DMG Mustafa Zaitūnī; * October 19, 1928 in Algiers, † January 5, 2014 in Nice ) was an Algerian- French football player and coach who has both countries also represented internationally. In 1986, he coached briefly the Algerian national team.
Club career
Very little is known about the first 25 years of life of Zitouni. Born in what was then French- ruled north Africa, he first played for AS Saint -Eugène in Algiers. No later than 1953, he came to mainland France, where he played for AS Cannes Zweitdivisionär. Whether he previously took for Stade Français Paris already, as alleged in a few sources, is uncertain - at least he saw there in the season 1952/53, not a single use in the highest league.
In Cannes the center half demonstrated his qualities in a way that the adjacent Erstdivisionär AS Monaco signed him in 1954. Even though the Monegasque landed in the first year only on a mid-table of the table, made his peace and clarity as well as his positional play Mustapha Zitouni soon for serious challenger Robert Jonquet, who at his club ( Stade Reims ) and rented this game position in the national team to have seemed. From 1955 reached Monaco annually according to the league title, in 1956 and 1958 League Third, Fifth 1957. In the cup competition played the team that possessed by Raymond Bellot, Abdelaziz Ben Tifour, Stéphane Bruey, Julien Stopyra and Michel Hidalgo a number of other first-class footballers, however, no significant role - except in the season in 1957/58, but it Zitouni was only partially involved. In the quarterfinals on April 6, 1958, he still belonged to the team that had prevailed against Racing Strasbourg with effort 2:1; in the semifinals ( 1-2 against Olympique Nîmes on 27 April ) he was missing already.
Because from the April 15, 1958 ended his pro as the National team career - like that of Mekhloufi, Brahimi, Ben Tifour and others - from one day to the other, because it was announced that he intended to play for the football team of the FLN, with the canvassed the Algerian liberation Front ( FLN) for the country's independence from France. The players were terminated without notice by their clubs and the Association drew a licenses. Zitouni had completed 26 point games for Monaco this season in 1957/58 and receive a highly doped offer from Real Madrid. Subsequently he toured with the FLN team until 1962, in particular through stadiums in Eastern Europe and the Third World. After the end of the Revolutionary War by the Treaty of Evian (1962 ) Zitouni settled permanently in Algeria. His sport he went to as player-coach for the RC Kouba, with whom he up in the Algerian Cup final made it in 1966, but it was defeated by 1:3 CR Belouizdad. After he finished his playing career.
In the National Team
Between October 1957 and March 1958 denied Mustapha Zitouni A four internationals for France, and its inclusion in the World Cup squad of Les Bleus for the finals in Sweden seemed a mere formality - until that 15 April 1958 of the FLN selection. To his step the defender remarked later:
"I have many friends in France, but the problem is bigger than all of us. What to do when your country is at war and you are called would you? "
The next four years he traveled with the FLN team through the world; on how many of the total of 80 games he was involved, is not yet to be determined.
From June 1963 to November 1964 he came into seven official and an unofficial match for the newly formed post-independence Algerian team used. Among them was a match against Germany, which only his second ( to Morocco) and third game ever played at the turn of 1963/64, against African teams. Algeria defeated the DFB team - in one of the last meetings under national coach Herberger - New Year's Day 1964 2-0. The former France professionals Oudjani, Khennane ( this is the two goal scorers ), Mekhloufi and goalkeeper Boubekeur stood next to center half Zitouni in the victorious team.
Successes as a player
- French Cup: Semi-finalist 1958 ( without the use in this game )
- Algerian Cup: Finalist 1966
Life after the career
Mustapha Zitouni operated a slaughterhouse in Algiers; He also has worked longer time for Air Algérie. Quite but he has never left the football in his country; In 1986, he was for a short time even interim coach of the Algerian national team. Due to its Alzheimer's disease he was in April 2008 at an anniversary game in Tunis, are thought by the beginnings of the FLN - choice and for which he should wear as a 79 -year-old once again the football boots, but not participate. Zitouni died aged 85 in Nice, where he was also buried.