Zidane calls for charity match for quake-hit Algeria

Zinedine Zidane is calling for a charity match between the French 1998 World Cup-winning team and Olympique Marseille to help earthquake-ravaged Algeria. "I want to organise a match between the 1998 French Bleus and Olympique Marseille in Marseille," the Real Madrid and France playmaker told the sports daily L'Equipe on Thursday.

"We have to help these people because human beings have to show solidarity with each other. I was born in France but my roots are in Algeria. It's my parents' country of birth," said Zidane, born and raised in Marseille.

Algeria suffered a major earthquake which killed close to 2,200 people in the provinces of Algiers and Boumerdes on May 21. According to relief workers, up to 10,000 people were injured and up to 80,000 have been left homeless.

Zidane told L'Equipe the date of a possible game had not yet been set. "We'll think about it. It's always difficult to gather 25 or 30 people but I think it would be possible to do it at the beginning of autumn, maybe early October."