Vieira is the Real deal, says Zidane

Real Madrid midfielder Zinedine Zidane, who returned to Champions' League action against Roma on Wednesday, has repeated his call for Arsenal midfielder and France team-mate Patrick Vieira to join him at the Bernabeu.

Zidane, who played his first Champions' League game for a year on Wednesday against Roma after a five-match suspension following two red cards last season, said Vieira is simply the best.

"The club decides who they have to recruit," Zidane said.

"What I said is that Vieira is the No 1 in his position. And, as I consider that Real is the No 1 club, I think Patrick could play here."

Zidane is Real's top scorer this season with four goals, but the team has not got into top gear in La Liga, languishing in 15th place, already ten points behind leaders Deportivo La Coruna.

"We are 10 points behind but I remember that at Juventus two years ago we were 10 points ahead and Lazio won the league," he said.

"It seems to me that it's more difficult to catch up 10 points in Italy than in Spain."

Zidane joined Real Madrid for a world record fee of £48 million from Juventus in the summer - but has so far failed to settle. Some have even suggested that Zidane's arrival has upset the equilibrium of the team and that they were better off last season – without him.

And Zidane willingly accepts that he still hasn't reached top form – two months into the season.

"I feel I am playing better but I am not happy with my performances and I still have a lot more to offer this team," he said.

Zidane added that coach Vincent Del Bosque was asking him to play deeper than he does with France or did with Juve.

"If the coach thinks it's better for the team, I can drop back," Zidane told l'Equipe.

"The problem is I could bring more, but we need to stop saying it's because of this or because of that, if it's because of me or because of my team-mates."

"With a bit of patience, I'm sure it will come. There are still some things to sort out on the pitch but with the team we have things can only get better."

"I'm not preoccupied by it, even if it annoys me. We are creating the chances but we have the bad luck not to score like Real did last year."