No time for sitting on his laurels

Group Four/Interview with Claude Makelele: Matthew Spiro talks to the Chelsea and France midfielder whose qualities as an athlete, ball-winner and team organiser are belatedly earning him the star billing he has deserved for some time

As dozens of journalists crowd eagerly around Claude Makelele at France's training centre in Clairefontaine, the Chelsea star sinks lower in his chair with a pained expression on his face. Just a few metres away Alou Diarra, who has also been selected for interview duty, fields questions from just three people, one of whom bears a striking resemblance to the Lens midfielder and could even be his brother.

With questions arriving from all angles, Makelele grits his teeth, offers curt responses, and gives the distinct impression he would rather be somewhere else. Out on the training ground probably. Throughout his career, Makelele has worked tirelessly when he is on the pitch and strove to stay out of the media's way at all other times.

Until recently he has succeeded. No matter how well he played for Nantes, Real Madrid or Chelsea, there has always been a more flamboyant player - a Christian Karembeu, a Zinedine Zidane or a Frank Lampard - around to steal the back page headlines. Even when he retired from international football last September after being dropped by Raymond Domenech, the French press made surprisingly little of it.

A year on, plenty has changed. While Domenech spent last season fruitlessly trying to rebuild the side with young players, Makelele's immense performances in midfield were helping Chelsea to the Premiership title.

Makelele is the kind of player you don't always notice, but are sure to miss when he's not around. That has certainly been the case with France, which is why the mild-mannered Frenchman has suddenly found himself elevated to hero status along with Zidane and Lilian Thuram following the trio's international U-turns.

Uncomfortable with his new standing, the 32-year-old has been trying to downplay his own importance this week.

"We shouldn't be regarded as saviours," Makelele insists. "Zizou maybe, but certainly not me. I'm just a member of the team and I'm simply here to give my all and to help France achieve its goal. But my role here is identical to my role with Chelsea. I don't have any extra responsibility."

The problem is that Makelele's qualities as an athlete, ball-winner and team organiser are belatedly earning him the star billing he has deserved for some time. While Zidane admits that Real have "sorely missed" him since he left Spain in 2003, Thierry Henry describes Makelele as "one of the toughest and most valuable players in the Premiership".

With hindsight it seems astonishing that Domenech could leave Makelele on the bench to accommodate the unproven Benoit Pedretti on that fateful night against the Faroe Islands in Torshavn.

"At the time it looked as though France didn't need me anymore," Makelele recalls. "The coach had decided to bring in younger guys and I could understand his logic. But I'm not the sort of player who is prepared to make those kind of journeys to sit on the bench. Not at this stage of my career. That's why I decided to put my family first and retire."

It is still not clear whether the France coach really wants Makelele back. After the failure of Domenech's "new generation", the 53-year-old's authority has been further undermined by the return of three old heads, and rumours continue to circulate that Zidane now has the final word on team selection. Makelele made it perfectly clear which of the two gave him the motivation to come back.

"I decided to return because of Zidane," he explains. "One day Zizou called me and asked if I'd be prepared to play for France again. I just laughed because I thought it was a wind up.

"Once I realised he was serious I asked for some time to think it over. But when Zidane gets something in his head he doesn't let go, and he phoned me several more times that week. If it wasn't for Zidane, I wouldn't have come back," he adds.

Makelele's friendship with the new France captain could ultimately prove the difference between World Cup qualification and abject failure.

Room-mates at Clairefontaine once again, the pair have been sharing laughs on the training field throughout the past week, lightening the mood in the squad. The omens certainly appear positive, with the injection of the two world-class midfielders making an immediate impact in Montpellier last month when Les Bleus turned in their best display under Domenech against the Ivory Coast.

"The three of us came back because we were desperate to play for France again," Makelele says. "We may be in our 30s, but we have an amazing amount of energy and I think that showed in the way we played in Montpellier.

"Personally I feel as though I'm playing the best football of my career right now. I'm hungry and I want to play as many games and win as many as possible."

Unlike Zidane and Thuram, Makelele has not yet won anything in a France shirt. Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Makelele moved to France with his parents aged four and made his debut for his adopted country in 1995.

Having helped Nantes win the French title in 1994-'95, Makelele, an all-action midfielder who would attack as much as defend, was being tipped for great things and was rated highly by France coach Aimé Jacquet. But as Jacquet pieced together the team that would go on to make history, Makelele temporarily lost his way.

Following a failed spell at Marseille, where he was employed primarily at right-back, Makelele held lengthy discussions with his father - a former Zairean international and Makelele's most valued confidante - before opting for a move to Spanish side Celta Vigo in 1998.

Makelele reinvented himself in La Liga, playing for the first time in that sitting role just in front of the defence which has since become his trademark. "For me, this's the most important position in the modern game - even more important than a striker," Makelele says. "There aren't many players around who can organise the game from in front of the defence. You have to be fast, work hard and know how to read the game."

Makelele missed out on Roger Lemerre's Euro 2000 squad but after signing for Real that same summer, he was soon back in the picture thanks to some more helpful prompting from Zidane.

Outstanding with Real for three seasons and Chelsea for two, Makelele has not yet made the same impact at international level. He played just once in France's flawed 2002 World Cup campaign and formed an ineffective partnership with Vieira at Euro 2004.

Many feel Makelele is at his best when he plays the holding role alone, as he did so well in France's last game. But he insists he will be grateful to have Vieira back alongside him again in Dublin. "I enjoy playing with Patrick. We're used to playing together and we read each other's games well. When he moves forward I stay back and vice-versa."

Neither featured in the goalless draw at the Stade de France in October, and Makelele is convinced that he and Vieira can make the difference at Lansdowne Road. "Having a strong midfield is vital because it gives the rest of the team a platform," he says. "Patrick and I both thrive in physical games and we could hardly be more motivated. I'm desperate to get to another World Cup and I feel ready for the battle."

Ireland have been warned.