MADRID, May 7 - Zinedine Zidane scored for Real Madrid when he was given an emotional send-off by the club's fans on Sunday in his last match at the Bernabeu before his retirement after the World Cup.

With his side trailing 2-1 to Villarreal, the three-times World Player of the Year rose to the occasion when looped a header over keeper Mariano Barbosa and into the net after David Beckham had clipped the ball into the area.

Real ended up drawing the game 3-3, a result that allowed them to leapfrog Valencia and take second place in the Primera Liga a point ahead of Valencia and 12 behind Barcelona, who retained their title in midweek.

An 80,000 capacity crowd paid tribute to the 33-year-old France midfielder before kickoff by holding up a vast, white mosaic made up of shirts emblazoned with his name and the number five.

The Frenchman was given a standing ovation by the crowd while the video screens played highlights of his five-year career with the Spanish giants.

The player himself looked somewhat embarrassed by the tribute. He kept his head down and carried on with his warm-up exercises but briefly acknowledged the crowd before the match got underway.

Zidane's team mates all wore a shirt specially made for the occasion with "Zidane 2001-2006" embroidered below the club crest.

The Real Madrid playmaker was given another ovation when he was substituted five minutes from the final whistle and returned to the centre of the pitch after the match to thank the fans for their support.

Zidane joined Real for a world-record transfer fee of $66 million from Juventus in 2001, having been targeted by then club president Florentino Perez as a key part of his plans to construct a "Galactico" super team for the club's centenary season.

He had a difficult start at Real but soon became an integral part of the team and proved to be the most influential player in their run to the European Cup final where he scored a stunning winner in the 2-1 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in Glasgow.

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