The build-up to the 1998 World Cup final is one of the most surreal episodes in modern football history.
After lighting up the tournament on the Seleção’s way to the final, striker Ronaldo suffered what was then a mysterious medical episode in the hours before kick-off.
Rumours swirled around the Stade de France about whether or not the reigning Ballon d’Or winner had been put on Brazil’s team sheet as Mario Zagallo’s side stood on the brink of retaining the title they had won in the USA four years earlier.
Youri Djorkaeff’s pre-match Ronaldo visit
It would later transpire that Ronaldo had suffered a convulsive fit on the afternoon of the final, losing consciousness and spending three hours in a local hospital. After preliminary tests did not flag up any abnormalities, Ronaldo was discharged shortly before kick-off and stated that he intended to play.
Ronaldo was at Inter Milan at the time and the final pitted him against one of his club team-mates in Youri Djorkaeff, who was compelled to take time out of preparing for the biggest game of his life to check on his friend.
“That’s true,” Djorkaeff tells FourFourTwo. “I went to Brazil’s dressing room. Mario Zagallo opened the door. I told him I’d heard something had happened to my friend Ronaldo and wanted to know if he was OK.”
Djorkaeff and Ronaldo had struck up a close friendship during the previous season at the San Siro, as they added a friendly rivalry to their training day routine.
“I said to Ronaldo: “Don’t leave me out there playing alone.” That season, after every training session in Milan, the two of us stayed behind to practise hitting the crossbar.”
The pair had been crucial parts of Inter’s successful season which saw them finish second in Serie A, but win the UEFA Cup, when they saw off Lazio in the final, with Ronaldo scoring the final goal. During this time, the extra-curricular sessions on the training ground had even led to a running joke between the two stars that would culminate that evening in Paris.
“We used to tease each other that whoever got the most points would win the World Cup,” he continues. “He couldn’t miss that final.”
Djorkaeff’s show of his support would culminate with a reminder of the pair’s competitive spirit.
“I’m going to beat you,” I told him,” he added, with the midfielder going on to be proved right as France beat a shellshocked Brazil side 3-0.
But ultimately, the mutual friendship and respect would remain intact. “After the match, we swapped shirts,” Djorkaeff confirms.
