Zidane has left Real Madrid after failing to help them lift the La Liga 2020/21 title. Atletico Madrid lifted only their second La Liga title this century as they finished the season with 86 points, two points ahead of Zidane’s Madrid.
“Real Madrid C. F. announces that Zinedine Zidane has decided to bring an end to his current spell as head coach of our club. We must now respect his decision and express our gratitude for his professionalism, dedication and passion over the years and what he means to Real Madrid.” Real Madrid said in a statement on social media.”
The Frenchman's departure comes at the end of a disappointing campaign for the 13-time European champions, who also lost to Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals as they failed to win a trophy for the first time in 11 seasons. Only 10 days ago Zidane, who has a contract until 2022, denied press speculation that he had already told his players he would be leaving at the end of the season. Zidane has left Real Madrid with at least a year left on his contract for the third time (once as a coach, once as a player). However, he did not negotiate a pay-off on any of the three occasions. This is thought to have cost him €42 million. So, who are the candidates to succeed at the club? Let’s find out.
1. Antonio Conte
Conte is heavily linked with a move to the Bernabeu this summer. By mutual accord, Antonio Conte has left Inter Milan, with Simone Inzaghi set to take over as head coach of the Serie A champions. Conte has reached an agreement with the club's owners to be paid €7 million (£6 million) in the last year of his contract. Conte has won league titles with Juventus, Chelsea, and Inter Milan, most recently. He has done an outstanding job of utilising potential in past jobs and is tactically one of the best managers in the world. His concepts and execution are equally impressive. In terms of acumen and accomplishments, he's also the best manager available.
2. Raul
Former Real Madrid forward and current Castilla manager, Raul is another prime candidate to take the top job at the club. Raul was named young coach of Real Madrid on August 17, 2018, and is now in charge of the Cadete B (under-15) team. He was named manager of Real Madrid Castilla the following year. Raul has just led Castilla to the Segunda promotion playoffs, a difficult achievement in a season marred by the covid-19 outbreak and everything that entails. However, he was been heavily linked with a move to Germany to take the top job at Frankfurt. But after Oliver Glasner’s appointment, Raul is again a top contender for the first team job at Real Madrid. His game knowledge and leadership abilities are unrivalled. In some aspects, he's a perfect successor of Zidane in terms of man-management, and there's always the chance he'll be better tactically than Zizou.
3. Joachim Low
German National Team manager Joachim Low is set to leave the job after the Euros. He is being replaced by Hansi Flick. He is also in contention for Real Madrid’s managerial position. While still active as a player, Löw began his coaching career as a youth coach with FC Winterthur. He was a player-coach for FC Frauenfeld in 1994–95. Klinsmann welcomed him into the German system as an assistant manager after 11 years of coaching various teams. In 2006, he succeeded Klinsmann as the manager of the national team. He helped the team reach the 2008 UEFA European Championships final, where they lost to Spain. He helped the team finish third in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and finally won the prestigious competition in 2014 defeating Argentina in the final. With his experience, Real Madrid could rebuild their squad.
