On This Day: Zidane & Vieira was born; Rijkaard appointed as Barca coach

Hi all, welcome to All Football's On This Day! Let's find out what happened today (June 23rd) in football history. If you have more stories and news that happened on this day in history, feel free to post them in the comment area and share them with AFers.

On this day in 1972 - One of the greatest midfielders and one of the greatest managers Zinedine Zidane was born

Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Zidane was an elite playmaker, renowned for his elegance, vision, ball control and technique, and played as an attacking midfielder for Cannes, Bordeaux, Juventus and Real Madrid. At club level, Zidane won two Serie A league titles with Juventus. In Spain, Zidane won the La Liga title and the UEFA Champions League, with his left-foot volleyed winner in the 2002 UEFA Champions League Final considered to be one of the greatest goals in the competition's history. Zidane also won an Intercontinental Cup and a UEFA Super Cup with both teams.

Capped 108 times by France, Zidane won the 1998 FIFA World Cup, scoring twice in the final and being named to the All-Star Team, while also winning UEFA Euro 2000, being named Player of the Tournament. He also received the Golden Ball for player of the tournament at the 2006 World Cup, despite his infamous sending off in the final against Italy for headbutting Marco Materazzi in the chest. He retired as the fourth-most capped player in France history.

Zidane received many individual accolades as a player, including being named the FIFA World Player of the Year in 1998, 2000 and 2003, and winning the 1998 Ballon d'Or. 

He remained in the position for two years before taking the helm of the first team in January 2016. In his two and a half seasons with Madrid, Zidane won the UEFA Champions League an unprecedented three times consecutively, a La Liga title, a Supercopa de España, and the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup twice each. His success saw him named Best FIFA Men's Coach in 2017. Zidane returned to the club as manager in March 2019.

On this day in 2003 - Frank Rijkaard was appointed coach of Barcelona

Frank Rijkaard was a relatively inexperienced coach but Barcelona appointed him as the man to lead the club back to the glory days. In the beginning, it looked like a failed bet. Barcelona were even worse than the previous season and the Dutchman was about to get sacked. However, in the second part of the season, Barcelona, led by Ronaldinho, had an impressive series of good results (including a win at the Bernabeu) and managed to finish in second place in La Liga, only behind Valencia.

In the following season, with Ronaldinho again at his best, Rijkaard led Barcelona to the league title that had eluded the club for so long. Finally, in 2005-2006, he won the league again and added the Champions League trophy.

His final two seasons weren't as successful and he was eventually sacked. Still, he and Ronaldinho were responsible for Barcelona's resurgence, which makes Rijkaard one of the most important managers in Barcelona's history.

Finally, he was also the man who launched the career of one of the most talented players ever to grace the football pitch: Lionel Messi.

On this day in 1976 - France legend, former Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira was born

During his nine-year stint in the Premier League, Vieira established himself as a dominating box-to-box midfielder, noted for his aggressive and highly competitive style of play, an attitude that also helped him excel as captain of the club from 2002 until his departure in 2005. He helped Arsenal achieve a sustained period of success during his time at the club, where he lifted three FA Cups and three league titles, including one unbeaten. He then returned to Italy, playing for Juventus, but quickly departed after the club sustained relegation for their part in a match-fixing scandal. He then signed for Inter Milan, where he won three league titles, before featuring for Manchester City, where he won another FA Cup before retiring in 2011.

Vieira featured at senior level for much of his international career, representing France over a period of 12 years, where he also spent some part as captain. He played in the final in his nation's victorious campaign at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and featured heavily as the team also won Euro 2000. Despite also playing a key role in the side that finished runners-up in the 2006 World Cup, Vieira was used sparingly by France in the latter stages of his career, and he retired from international competition in 2010, after amassing 107 appearances for the side.

He is now the manager of French side Nice.

On this day in 2018 - Toni Kroos scored THAT tricky free-kick at the World Cup

Toni Kroos rescued holders Germany from the brink of an unthinkable early World Cup exit, curling home a sensational winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time to seal a 2-1 win over Sweden.

When the hope looked to be gone, Kroos exchanged passes with Reus at a free-kick on the left edge of the box and sent a sweet strike into the far corner.

On this day in 2016 - Victor Wanyama signed for Tottenham Hotspur

On 23 June 2016, Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur announced that they had reached an agreement with Southampton for the transfer of Wanyama, signing a five-year contract for a fee of £11 million. Wanyama had previously worked with Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino who brought him to Southampton in July 2013.