Badou Zaki has revealed he once had the chance to join Real Madrid at the height of his career, only for the move to fall through because of problems with the president of his club, Real Mallorca.
The former Morocco goalkeeper, a key figure for the Lions of the Atlas in the 1980s, said he received an offer from the Spanish giants during the period when John Toshack was in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Speaking to pan-Arab channel Al Mashhad, Zaki explained that the transfer never progressed as hoped, despite Real Madrid’s interest.
“I received an offer from Real Madrid when John Toshack was the coach, but things did not go well with the president of Mallorca,” the current Jordan head coach said.
Zaki did not disclose how advanced the talks became or whether Real Madrid and Mallorca ever came close to reaching an agreement. However, he said he later learned more about the attempted deal directly from Toshack, years after it collapsed.
“He told me these things when he came to coach Wydad,” Zaki added, referring to Toshack’s later spell in charge of Wydad Casablanca. “Wearing the Real Madrid shirt was beyond my wildest dreams. We were playing with Mallorca, a team fighting to stay in the first division, and suddenly we were talking about a club that was winning the biggest trophies.”
Interest during Real Madrid’s dominant era
The episode is believed to date back to the 1989-90 season, when Toshack was manager of Real Madrid.
That campaign saw Real Madrid, known as Los Merengues, win their fifth successive La Liga title and the 25th Spanish championship in their history. They also set a league record by scoring 107 goals over the course of the season.
At the same time, Zaki was enjoying a standout spell with Real Mallorca. He had established himself as first-choice goalkeeper and helped the Balearic club return to La Liga following a successful promotion campaign from the second tier.
Missed chance at history
Zaki, who won the 1986 African Footballer of the Year award, ultimately stayed with Mallorca often referred to as Los Bermellones until 1992. He then returned to Morocco to end his playing career at FUS Rabat.
Had the transfer to Real Madrid gone through, Zaki would have become the first Moroccan player in the club’s history, more than 30 years before Achraf Hakimi and Brahim Diaz wore the famous white shirt.
Although the move never materialised, Zaki’s account underlines the high regard in which he was held in Spain during his prime, at a time when Real Madrid were one of the dominant forces in European football.
