Zinedine Zidane: Real Madrid reappoint Frenchman to replace Santiago Solari

[MenInG]

Zinedine Zidane has returned as Real Madrid manager just 10 months after leaving the Spanish giants.

The Frenchman replaces Santiago Solari, who was in charge for less than five months.

Former Real midfielder Zidane, 46, who left in May after leading the club to a third straight Champions League trophy, has agreed to take over until 2022, the club announced.

Real are currently third in La Liga, 12 points behind leaders Barcelona.

Solari was sacked after a 4-1 win over Real Valladolid on Sunday - which followed a shock Champions League exit to Ajax.

That 4-1 home defeat and 5-3 aggregate loss to the Dutch side was the final straw for Real president Florentino Perez.

The defeat by Ajax followed two consecutive losses to Barcelona in El Clasico - a 1-0 defeat in La Liga and a 3-0 thrashing in the Copa del Rey.

Zidane stepped down following the Champions League final victory over Liverpool, and Julen Lopetegui was hired as his successor just before the World Cup where he had been due to lead Spain, who promptly sacked him.

Four and a half months later it was Real's turn to fire him.

Reserve-team boss Solari came in as caretaker before being given a contract to 2021 on 13 November.

Despite returning less than a year after he left the club, Zidane faces a rebuilding job at Real Madrid after their Champions League dynasty came to a remarkable, humiliating end last week.

They have not adequately replaced Cristiano Ronaldo, who left for Juventus in the summer, with Karim Benzema the only Real player to reach double figures in La Liga (13). He has scored 22 goals in all competitions, with Gareth Bale on 13 and Sergio Ramos on 11.

None of those players have certain futures at Real, with captain Ramos, who has been at Real for 14 years, reportedly falling out with president Perez. Wales forward Bale is expected to leave because of a fractious relationship with the club's fans - who have booed him recently - and players.

Other stalwarts of recent glory like Marcelo and Toni Kroos have struggled too.

This may mean difficulties for Gareth Bale, who did not get on very well with Zidane.

Sergio Ramos will have his authority reinforced and Zidane also wants the likes of Eden Hazard and perhaps even Christian Eriksen to add to the side.

He will be given all the sporting authority and all the things he suggested in the summer that Florentino Perez did not want to do - most of them will be done now.

Zidane is coming in with the idea of not just managing the side but also managing the decisions for the first team.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/47528561

 

[Pakistanian]

Will be able to keep his legacy? I think he should've played it safe and turned down the offer.

Also interesting choice by bbc for the headline, he's a Frenchman when he's successful but Algerian when he's not.

 

[Prince of Pakistan]

Extremely excited after hearing the news! I just can't control my emotions at the moment.

I was so afraid that Mourinho would be the choice, but thankfully it won't be the 'failed one'.

With the legendary Zizou back Ramos, Marcelo will be 100% motivated again. Just need to buy Mbappe, Hazard and we will win another 3 champions league trophies! If only we could get Ronaldo back as well...

Hala Madrid Y Nada Mas.

 

[Arham_PakFan]

Good for Madrid.

But I feel for Solari. He should have been asked to leave after the season ended.

 

[Mueez]

Yes.....

Wonderful news, was so much gutted RM lost to Ajax.

Zizou will turn this team lethal again.

Just buy some world class players and get Navas back in the goal.

 

[shaaik]

Zinedine Zidane: Real Madrid reappoint Frenchman to replace Santiago Solari

Zinedine Zidane played for Real Madrid from 2001 to 2006 and originally managed them from 2016 to 2018

Zinedine Zidane said he is "very happy to be home" after returning as Real Madrid manager just 10 months after leaving the Spanish giants.

The Frenchman replaces Santiago Solari, who was sacked after less than five months in charge.

Former Real midfielder Zidane, 46, who left in May after leading the club to a third straight Champions League trophy, has agreed to take over until 2022.

Real are currently third in La Liga, 12 points behind leaders Barcelona.

"The best manager in the world has rejoined the club," Real president Florentino Perez said.

"Our destinies are once again united."

Bale, Hazard & challenges for Zidane at 'club in disarray' Real Madrid - Balague column

Newsround: Zidane and other managerial returns

Solari's last match as manager was a 4-1 win over Real Valladolid on Sunday - which followed a shock Champions League exit to Ajax.

That 4-1 home defeat and 5-3 aggregate loss to the Dutch side was the final straw for Perez.

The Champions League elimination followed two consecutive losses to Barcelona in El Clasico - a 1-0 reverse in La Liga and a 4-1 aggregate defeat in the Copa del Rey.

Zidane stepped down following the Champions League final victory over Liverpool, and Julen Lopetegui was hired as his successor just before the World Cup where he had been due to lead Spain, who promptly sacked him.

Four and a half months later it was Real's turn to fire him.

Reserve-team boss Solari came in as caretaker before being given a contract to 2021 on 13 November.

"Real Madrid thanks Santiago Solari for his work done and the commitment and loyalty he has shown to what is his home," the club said.

It added the former player had been offered another role with the club.

Zidane was officially unveiled in a ceremony on Monday and said: "I want to put this club back where it belongs.

"It has been difficult from the outside looking in.

"I have been living here in Madrid, doing my things. But I have recharged my batteries. I'm ready to coach this great club again."

What job faces Zidane at Real?

Despite returning less than a year after he left the club, Zidane faces a rebuilding job at Real Madrid after their Champions League dynasty came to a remarkable, humiliating end last week.

They have not adequately replaced Cristiano Ronaldo, who left for Juventus in the summer, with Karim Benzema the only Real player to reach double figures in La Liga (13). He has scored 22 goals in all competitions, with Gareth Bale on 13 and Sergio Ramos on 11.

None of those players have certain futures at Real, with captain Ramos, who has been at Real for 14 years, reportedly falling out with president Perez. Wales forward Bale is expected to leave because of a fractious relationship with the club's fans - who have booed him recently - and players.

Other stalwarts of recent glory like Marcelo and Toni Kroos have struggled too.

More than 300,000 Real Madrid fans voted on Marca's website on whether they should keep Gareth Bale. Only 8% said yes

Analysis

Guillem Balague, host of BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast Euro edition

This may mean difficulties for Gareth Bale, who did not get on very well with Zidane.

Sergio Ramos will have his authority reinforced and Zidane also wants the likes of Eden Hazard and perhaps even Christian Eriksen to add to the side.

He will be given all the sporting authority and all the things he suggested in the summer that Florentino Perez did not want to do - most of them will be done now.

Zidane is coming in with the idea of not just managing the side but also managing the decisions for the first team.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/47528561

 

[gazza619]

I am not a football person but when i see the name Zidane, I think of this calm chilled guy who had the coolest technique to take a penalty kick.

 

[The Viper]

Zidane having full autonomy is a scary prospect for most top clubs. He will go on a spending spree and Hazard is a certainty.

Others rumoured are Salah, Mane, Icardi and Mbappe.

 

[MMHS]

Real needs to get rid of this vile guy Florentino Perez first. If he remains president till 2022, I can bet ZZ won't see through his contract.

 

[Rana]

Its not the manager in this case, they need to replace the impact that was lost by Ronaldo

 

[MenInG]

MADRID (Reuters) - Real Madrid's players feel like they have won a trophy following Zinedine Zidane's return to the club after a troubling 10-month spell in the wake his departure, defender Alvaro Odriozola said.

Zidane resigned as Madrid coach last May after winning a third consecutive Champions League title, but the Frenchman made a remarkable comeback earlier this month when Santiago Solari was sacked.

That was less than five months after Julen Lopetegui was also removed from the role due to disappointing results.

The European champions, who were knocked out of this year's Champions League in the last 16 by Ajax Amsterdam after a chastening 4-1 defeat, enjoyed a therapeutic 2-0 win over Celta Vigo in Zidane's first game back in charge.

"Zidane's return has reignited the hopes of supporters and for us it's practically like winning a trophy, we are very happy," Odriozola said in an interview with website La Galerna.

"We have talked about what he likes about my game and about my weak points, 'Zizou' always tells you the truth and players appreciate sincerity like that."

Madrid are 12 points behind runaway La Liga leaders Barcelona and have no realistic prospect of winning a trophy this season after they were also eliminated in the Copa del Rey semi-finals by Barca.

"It has been a rollercoaster of a season but the important thing is to be self critical and see it as an apprenticeship," added Spain international Odriozola, who joined Madrid last July from Real Sociedad.

"You learn a lot in this club, a season at Madrid feels like three anywhere else, weeks feel like months."

Read more at https://www.thestar.com.my/sport/fo...id-like-winning-a-trophy/#XrimlwdlrC5SBt5A.99

 

[Saj]

2-2 home to Club Bruges.

Tough times at Real Madrid at the moment.

 

[cricketjoshila]

2-2 home to Club Bruges.

Tough times at Real Madrid at the moment.

Poor transfers.

They needed a better striker.

 

[sweep_shot]

Despite hiccups, Real Madrid is at the top of La Liga table.

I think Zidane is suitable for RM coaching position. He played for this club and he is probably emotionally attached with it.

 

[The Viper]

Zidane does it again as Real Madrid bring their manager back from brink

A little after 11 on Saturday night, standing by the bench where he began his coaching career against Getafe B, back before the three European Cups and the league title, before he walked out and back in again, winning another title, Zinedine Zidane was asked to name the best thing about his latest derby win over Atlético Madrid. At one end, two men with a ladder were taking down the net where Dani Carvajal had scored the second not long before – a superb shot thudding in off the post and Jan Oblak – but it wasn’t that. It wasn’t Casemiro’s opener, either. And it wasn’t Thibaut Courtois’s save to secure a clean sheet. Instead, there was a shrug, a smile and then Zidane said: “Everything.”

“These were three very important points, but it is a bit of everything. It was a complete performance, the win and the way we did it: against a team we know is very good that had gone 26 games without losing. And, well, I’m happy.”

He’d only gone and done it again. Atlético were top of the table, “favourites”, Zidane said. Six points ahead of Madrid with a game in hand, they stood before perhaps the best chance to win the league, better even than when they did. This was their strongest, deepest squad and they were dominating games, not just deciding them. They had won seven in a row, not lost a game and hadn’t even trailed, conceding twice in 10 matches. But now Madrid had put as many past them in one night, inflicting a first league defeat since February – when they last faced each other.

But that wasn’t all Zidane had done again. He had survived. To describe the most successful manager the European Cup has had as a survivor is a bit absurd, but it is also true. Another ultimatum overcome, there he was still standing, still smiling. Beaten by Cádiz, Alavés and Valencia, defeated twice by Shakhtar Donetsk, the team that had put five past them and none past anyone else, this might have been the week that ended Real Madrid’s season; instead, it is the week that finally got it started.

In the space of seven days, Madrid faced Sevilla, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Atlético Madrid. By the end of that run they could have been trailing Atlético by 12 points, having played a game more, and been out of the Champions League at the group stage for the first time ever. Do that and Zidane would be out too. But they didn’t do that, at least in part because Zidane would be out. Instead, Madrid won 1-0 at the Sánchez Pizjuán, beat Gladbach to win the group before drawing Atalanta in the last 16, and then defeated Atlético.

Victory for Atlético would have given them a bigger lead over their rivals than any side has overturned to win the title – but the gap now is three points, AS leading on “Madrid climb on board the league”. Marca went for: “Madrid revive the league”. As Zidane said, it wasn’t just that they had won, it was the way they had won, reasserting a superiority so clear you felt they could be champions again after all. “Madrid have turned things round like a sock,” one report said – which doesn’t say much for their hygiene and which somehow you always knew they would.

Thomas Lemar missed an absolute sitter that could have drawn Atlético level, it is true. The two goals Madrid scored were a header from a corner and an own goal, that’s also true. But it’s equally true that when Thibaut Courtois saved from Saúl Ñíguez late on, it was the only stop he made. “They were better than us, more intense,” the Atlético captain Koke said. “In the first half, we weren’t ourselves.”

The cynical might suggest that they were: that on Saturday Atlético’s recent shift in style was abandoned as it was always likely to be, another evolutionary process left incomplete. That when it came to it, Atlético did not believe in their new selves and that Madrid still exercise some strange hold over them.

Diego Simeone has talked about how Luis Suárez has conditioned the way Atletico play, obliging them to get closer to the opposition’s goal: there’s no point playing long to him, releasing him behind the defence. That in turn has favoured João Félix, perhaps the outstanding player this season. On Saturday, though, Suárez had 10 touches before he was withdrawn after 70 minutes, replaced by a defensive midfielder. João Félix had gone 10 minutes earlier, angrily kicking his seat. Atlético’s three-man central defence didn’t work, the wide men – Kieran Trippier and Yannick Carrasco – more full-backs than forwards, unable to escape from deep. And they saw Madrid complete 150 passes more, that new identity undone.

“The manager got it wrong,” Simeone said, something underlined by his decision to shift formation and make three changes at the break, removing both forwards soon after – a decision partly motivated by a desire to limit the damage. “Being leader is about the points you have, but also a state of mind,” wrote Orfeo Suárez in El Mundo. Atlético lacked that, he argued, and he wasn’t alone. “They retreated to their middle ages,” complained AS, “to proto-Cholismo.” In Marca, Roberto Palomar insisted: “It’s the syndrome of the step back again; it’s fine to lose to Madrid, but not to do so like old times.”

Yet it was one game, the formation was familiar – the same as recent, more successful weeks – it would be a leap to suggest they stepped back wilfully and the intention to continue playing out could be seen in how they were caught for Madrid’s first chance and the opening goal. Besides, there was another reason Atlético Madrid were not very good: Real Madrid were.

Diego Simeone watches his Atlético side slip to a rare defeat
Diego Simeone watches his Atlético side slip to a rare defeat. Photograph: Óscar del Pozo/AFP/Getty Images
They were what they were supposed to be. Asked to explain Madrid’s performance, the club’s institutional director, Emilio Butragueño, said: “Well, we have very good players.” Questioned about Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, Zidane replied: “Pffff, well … they’re ****ing great. But everyone, eh. Kroos and Modric are exceptional, it’s true. Benzema: what can I say? Lucas Vázquez, our captain [Sergio Ramos], Rafa [Varane], everyone, everyone …”
It was classic Zidane, always about them not him, and there is something in that. At their best, there may still be no midfield trio like Modric, Kroos and Casemiro. Against Atlético, Kroos completed 87 of 90 passes; against Gladbach, Modric rolled back the years and any opponent that was stupid enough to get too near. Karim Benzema was superb again: “Anyone who likes football likes Karim,” Zidane said. And there’s no big game player like Ramos, maybe anywhere: a man with a sense of occasion and a taste for the epic, a feel for the moments that really matter. “When they’re on, they’re on,” Zidane said last week. This week they had to be.

There’s something about immediate targets that drives them and may be just human nature; there are priorities in life, moments when everything else is left behind, the daily grind giving way to something grander or more important, moments when the threat of loss brings a realisation of what you have, a renewed seriousness. Madrid won three consecutive European Cups but Zidane always insisted the league satisfied him more, because he knew how elusive consistency can be. This is the team that embraced the 2019-20 La Liga campaign as a post-pandemic sprint more than a season-long slog and, defeated by sides half their size this season, won in Barcelona and Seville, beat Internazionale twice, and now defeated the team no one else could.

In seven decisive days, Real Madrid stepped back from the precipice, just as somehow, you always knew they would. Not least because they needed to and because Zidane needed them to – much as he had before the clásico and in Istanbul last season. A tightrope walker, as one columnist called him, he had made it to the other side again.

Real Madrid ease to derby win over Atlético after Casemiro opener

Make no mistake, it wasn’t talk from outside that placed Zidane on the edge; it was talk from the inside. Much is made of his relationship with key dressing-room figures, especially the veterans to whom he turned. It is often a backhanded compliment at best, wilfully overlooking tactical ideas – Modric and Kroos playing wide to overload the wings on Saturday for example – and making it sound simple or dismissing it as insignificant when sometimes it is everything. There was a sense of “don’t touch our Zidane” about Madrid’s reaction, which would make a brilliant Machiavellian plot of leaks from above – a reaction sought and secured. The question they, and others ask, is why aren’t Madrid always like this? “It’s hard to know, but it’s an unusual season,” Carvajal said.

“Everyone’s talking about this,” Casemiro said. “But lots of teams are having ups and downs, that’s normal. It’s the way it is; there are loads of games, no time. It’s not an excuse, but we’re not machines. It’s not just about intensity, it’s about playing well. We have to talk about football too. It’s easy to talk about Toni and Luka; you can see on the pitch they know how to play, and you can see the manager’s hand too.

“It’s not just the players; it’s also the coaching staff, who study things. And it’s not about who comes out of this stronger: Real Madrid come out of it stronger. You can see that we trust the manager, but it’s not just for him: it’s our pride, the badge, the club. You can see that we’re in this together.”

https://www.theguardian.com/footbal...-real-madrid-atletico-derby-analysis-sid-lowe

 

[MenInG]

The club idol told his players that he would not be staying on prior to their clash with Sevilla last week

Zinedine Zidane has told his Real Madrid squad that he will walk away from the club at the end of the 2020-21 season, Goal can confirm.

The Frenchman revealed his decision in the dressing room prior to last Sunday's 2-2 draw away to Sevilla in La Liga.

It is the second time he has resigned from the post, having previously quit following Madrid's third consecutive Champions League triumph in 2018.

Madrid take on Athletic Club on Sunday in La Liga and then conclude their season at home to Villarreal on May 23.

Those will be Zidane's last two games in charge of the Blancos, having decided to cut short his second spell on the bench.

Goal had previously reported that the squad believed he would not stay on for another season after Madrid's Champions League elimination at the hands of Chelsea at the semi-final stage.

The coach's physical and mental fatigue have been mentioned as possible reasons for his stepping down, after he was drafted back into the hotseat in urgent circumstances towards the end of the 2018-19 campaign when both Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari failed to match his results at the Madrid helm.

Zidane's timing may nevertheless also stoke up rumours linking the Frenchman to a sensational return to Turin.

A favourite at Juventus as a player, Zidane would be a dream candidate for the club should they dispense with Andrea Pirlo, although it is doubtful whether he would be prepared to jump back into coaching so soon after leaving the Spanish capital.

Will he leave with another La Liga title?

After falling at the penultimate stage in the Champions League, all eyes are on La Liga at Madrid.

With two games left to play, Zidane's men are currently second, two points behind leaders Atletico Madrid, with Barcelona a further two back in third.

Madrid, however, hold what might prove to be a decisive advantage. In the case of a tie on points, Zidane's side have a superior head-to-head record against both their rivals, which would give them the edge.

https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/zid...eason-after-telling/vu55eqtjj68c1khnxn3vsrvhn

 

[OMB]

Zinedine Zidane: Real Madrid manager denies telling players he will leave

Media reports claimed the Frenchman informed his squad a week ago that he would leave at the end of the season.

Zidane led Real to a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, to take the La Liga title race to the final day.

"How could I tell the players I'm leaving now? We're giving our everything for the title and I just say 'by the way, I'm off'?" he said.

"People outside the club can say whatever they like, but I would never, ever say that to my players."

Real are two points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid, who came from behind to beat Osasuna 2-1 at home.

Zidane's side face Villarreal at the Bernabeu next Sunday on the final day of the season knowing that, if Atletico lose or draw at Real Valladolid, victory would give them the title.

"At the end of the season, then we'll see what happens, but right now we're focused on our final game," Zidane said.

"We can't just keep talking about my future. The last game of the season is far more important than that."

Zidane, 48, is in his second spell as manager at Real, having won three consecutive Champions League titles in his first between 2016 and 2018.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/57138798

 

[Saj]

Reports saying Zinedine Zidane has decided to leave Real Madrid with immediate effect.

 

[Rana]

Come on Arsenal make your move! Anything over Arteta!!’

 

[Hasan123]

Interested to see who they appoint next. Conte and Allegri are available but they have been available before and Real Madrid have not gone for them.

 

[MenInG]

Zinedine Zidane has stepped down as Real Madrid head coach for the second time, the club have confirmed.

The Frenchman has called time on his second spell in charge of the La Liga club, who he has led to two league titles and three Champions League victories since 2015.

Zidane told club directors and the first-team squad of his decision on Wednesday and is finalised his exit at Real's Valdebebas training complex a day later.

His departure comes after Real narrowly lost out on the league title to city rivals Atletico Madrid at the weekend. Real finished second in La Liga, two points behind Atletico, and were knocked out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage and the Copa del Rey in the round of 32 to end the season without a trophy for the first time in 11 years.

Off the field, Real were one of the key players behind the failed Super League breakaway with the club president, Florentino Perez, repeatedly defending the plan and engaging in a war of words with Uefa that shows no sign of slowing down.

"It is now time to respect his decision and show him our appreciation for his professionalism, dedication and passion in all these years, and for what his figure represents for Real Madrid," a club statement read.

"Zidane is one of the great myths of Real Madrid and his legend goes beyond what he has been as a coach and player of our club. He knows that he is at the heart of Real Madrid and that Real Madrid is and will always be his home."

Spanish football expert Alvaro Montero told Sky Sports:

"It's an option that Zidane could replace Maurio Pochettino at PSG. He's unpredictable and he could well head back to France if Pochettino decides to return to Tottenham.

"It was thought that Juventus was an option before they turned to Massimiliano Allegri to replace Andrea Pirlo. But who knows what will happen after the Euros?

"Perhaps Didier Deschamps will leave the French national team and maybe Zidane will be his replacement. He's unpredictable so could stay a whole year without coaching."

Real Madrid will listen to offers for Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale this summer amid their continued interest in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.

Hazard has scored only five times since he moved from Chelsea two years ago in a deal worth up to £130m.

Injury problems mean the Belgian has featured in only 43 games across all competitions in two seasons in Spain.

The 30-year-old was not in the squad for Saturday's game against Villarreal as Real finished the campaign second in La Liga, two points behind champions Atletico Madrid.

The collapse of the proposed European Super League, plus their ongoing interest in Mbappe and Haaland, means Real Madrid need to raise money from player sales this summer.

As well as Hazard and Bale, Real will listen to offers for other players such as Luka Jovic.

SKY

 

[PetroDollars]

Reports say Allegri has rejected RM and is looking to rejoin Juve.

If this is true it shows how terrible the situation at RM is, that a manager resigns and allegri who quit juve to get this job doesnt want it anymore, They must be going bankrupt.

 

[The_KING]

Zidane is a really good manager. Real Madrid are a poor side, but he did well to take them to 2nd in La Liga and SFs of the champions league. I would love him at United, but unfortunately the Norwegian fraud won’t get the sack anytime soon.

 

[PetroDollars]

Zidane is a really good manager. Real Madrid are a poor side, but he did well to take them to 2nd in La Liga and SFs of the champions league. I would love him at United, but unfortunately the Norwegian fraud won’t get the sack anytime soon.

Only to turn on him after 6 months and ask for another manager )

 

[MenInG]

Antonio Conte is being considered as Zinedine Zidane's successor at Real Madrid after they missed out on first-choice Max Allegri, according to Sky in Italy.

 

[OMB]

Zinedine Zidane Says Quit Real Madrid Because Of Club's Lack Of "Faith"

Zinedine Zidane said he resigned as Real Madrid manager because he felt the Spanish club no longer had any faith in him.


Zinedine Zidane resigned as Real Madrid manager because he felt the Spanish club no longer had any confidence in him, he wrote in an open letter on Monday. "I'm leaving because I feel the club no longer has the faith in me I need, and doesn't offer me the support to build something in the medium or long term," the Frenchman wrote in the letter published in the sports daily AS.

"I am a born winner and I was here to win trophies, but beyond this there are human beings, emotions, life and I have the feeling that these things have not been valued, that it has not been understood that this is also how the dynamic of a great club is maintained," he said.

"But everything I built on a daily basis, what I brought to the relationship with the players... has been forgotten."

"I'm leaving, but I'm not jumping ship and I'm not tired of coaching," he said.

Real had a disappointing season, finishing second in La Liga behind neighbours Atletico Madrid and losing to eventual winners Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals.

It was the first time that the 13-time European champions had failed to win a trophy in 11 season.

It is the second time that Zidane has resigned as Real Madrid manager.

The 1998 World Cup winner first took the helm in January 2016 and guided Real to the 2017 La Liga title and an unprecedented hat-trick of Champions League titles before abruptly quitting on May 31, 2018.

Less than a year later he returned after Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari were sacked as managers in quick succession.

'Hurt me'

In his letter Zidane said he left the club in 2018 because it needed "a different voice to keep itself at the highest" but this time "things are different".

"I want what we have achieved together to be respected. I would have liked in recent months my relationship with the club and with the president (Florentino Perez) to have been a little different from that of other coaches," Zidane said.

"I wasn't asking for privileges, of course not, but a little more memory," added Zidane.

"It hurt me a great deal when I would read in the press, after a loss, that they were going to fire me if I did not win the next match.

"It hurt me and the entire team because these messages which were intentionally leaked to the media created negative interferences with the squad, they created doubts and misunderstandings."

Zidane's contract with Real was set to expire in 2022 but he had repeatedly refused to confirm he would still be at the club next season.

'Always be grateful'

He has a history of making surprise announcements: as a player, he initially announced his retirement from international football in 2004 before coming back for the 2006 World Cup, after which he retired for good following his red card for butting on Italy's Marco Materazzi as France lost the final.

"Spending 20 years in Madrid has been the most beautiful thing that has ever happened to me in life and I know that I owe it exclusively to Florentino Perez who bet on me in 2001," Zidane said in the letter.

"I say it from the heart, I will always be grateful to the 'presi' for it. Always," he added.

Zidane also had a message to Real fans, saying he wanted them to know that "we gave our 100 percent".

Zidane now take another break from football although there has been talk of him either taking charge of the French national team.

But Didier Deschamps, who led France to victory in the last World Cup, is likely to remain national coach until the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, barring a disastrous performance at the European Championship that kicks off in June.
https://sports.ndtv.com/football/zinedine-zidane-says-quit-real-madrid-because-of-clubs-lack-of-faith-2452910?pfrom=sports_morelisting_2021

 

[GenericBrand]

Pathetic stuff from RM