June 1 – It came as a bombshell to both players and fans. The intriguing question now is who takes over at Real Madrid following Zinedine Zidane’s shock decision to step down just days after clinching a third consecutive Champions League title.
“I think it’s the moment, both for me, the team and the club. It’s a strange moment to do so, I know, but an important one too. I had to do this for everyone,” Zidane told a stunned press conference Thursday.
“You have to know when to quit,” said the Frenchman, who was Madrid’s coach for two and half seasons. “This is the right moment. I am a winner and if I don’t see it clearly that we will keep winning, it’s time for a change.”
After ending his playing career in disgrace after headbutting Italy defender Marco Materazzi in the 2006 World Cup final, Zidane is calling time on his coaching stint with Real with a far more positive image.
In all he won nine titles there but the fact remains that by their own high standards, Real had poor domestic season finishing 17 points behind Barcelona in third place.
Nevertheless even Real president Florentina Perez was taken aback. “It was a completely unexpected decision,” he said of Zidane’s departure. “Today is a sad day for me, for the fans and for all the people who work at the club. I wish we could always have Zidane by our side, but we know that when Zizou makes a decision, the only thing we can do is to accept it and respect it.”
Zidane spoke little about his future but said he is not immediately looking to coach another club. As for his successor, several names are being suggested, including Tottenham’s Mauricio Pochettino (even though he has just signed a new five-year contract), Antonio Conte of Chelsea, Germany’s Joachim Loew and Arsene Wenger who has left Arsenal after 22 years.
Tellingly, not only did Madrid finish third in the league but were eliminated at home by Leganes in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey, a moment which Zidane said was the worst of his coaching career with the club.
He clearly saw the signs, even if others didn’t, that it was the end of the road. “After three years, (the club) needs a change in speech, a new work methodology. We went through good moments but also complicated ones, and I don’t forget them. I want to leave when everything is going well. This is a good moment to end it well.”
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