Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro admits he still gets nervous talking to manager Zinedine Zidane.
The 28-year-old joined Los Blancos in 2013 and has established himself as a crucial part of Zidane's starting side in recent seasons.
Having grown up watching Zizou in action, Casemiro revealed he still gets taken back when chatting to the football legend.
Despite those lingering nerves, the duo have struck up a strong relationship, with Zidane constantly pushing Casemiro to evolve as a midfielder.
“Even today I get a little nervous talking to him,” Casemiro told The Guardian. “I tell him he doesn’t know what he meant for us, for me.
“Yeah, I tell him that: you took ‘98 [World Cup] away but it didn’t change anything. Also, knowing him now, I can say he deserves it. He’s incredible: the humility, how he expresses football. He treats us with so much affection and love.
"He’s very insistent; he always, always says: ‘Case, you can do more: arrive from the second line, feed midfielders, bring the ball out cleanly.’
"This year, maybe I’ve had more protagonism with the ball, but I still know my job: rob the ball, give it to my team-mates. But Zizou is pesado, heavy going: always talking to me, wanting more.
"He says: ‘I’m not asking you to do something you can’t do; I’m asking you to do something you can.’ He trusts me a lot.”
Casemiro, who has backed Real Madrid to upset Manchester City in the Champions League, appears to have the attributes of a future manager himself and takes the analysis of matches very seriously - much to his wife's annoyance.
“I watch back, see the errors, evaluate. I love that. People say I think like a coach," he said.
"I always try to read the game, the other team’s mind, their coach, what they’re trying to do. Often the smallest details – a metre either way – change everything.
"I have [football analytics platform] Wyscout and watch everything, from China or anywhere. My wife gets annoyed. It’s my work. There’s a time for everything but it’s my job. And I love it. My life is football. I have to think permanently about football."
