Ranking the 5 most likely candidates to replace Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid
Zinedine Zidane has reportedly informed the Real Madrid board that he wants to leave at the end of the season. It is also claimed the Real Madrid manager told the dressing room that he will not be staying beyond the end of the season following their 2-2 draw against Sevilla last week.
Physical and mental fatigue from managing a club of Real Madrid's stature has been mentioned as the possible reasons behind Zizou deciding to call it quits.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid still have an outside chance of winning the La Liga title as they sit second in the table, two points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid with two matches remaining in the season.
Real Madrid are lining up potential replacements for Zinedine Zidane
Zidane calling it quits leaves Florentino Perez and co. with a huge decision to make over the summer. With several high-profile players available in the market, they will need to make the right choice, keeping the long-term future of the club in mind.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five potential replacements for Zinedine Zidane.
#5 Hans Dieter-Flick
Hans Dieter-Flick is set to leave Bayern Munich after two stellar seasons in charge. Bayern Munich have already announced that Julian Nagelsmann will take over as the new manager in the summer, making continental treble winner Flick one of the most sought-after out-of-job managers in the world.
As per reports, Flick is first in line to replace Joachim Low as the manager of the German national team. Diario AS claim that Barcelona have made contact with Flick as they view him as a potential replacement for Ronald Koeman. Juventus have also been linked with the Bayern Munich manager.
Flick has proven to be an excellent coach guiding Bayern Munich to a continental treble in his first season in charge and has improved several players in his short stint as well. He'd be a great replacement for Zidane but he's most likely to end up as the coach of the German national team.
#4 Carlo Ancelotti
The Mirror claims that Real Madrid have identified Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti as a potential replacement for Zinedine Zidane. Carlo Ancelotti had already managed Real Madrid between 2013 and 2015 and his ideas were key to bringing out the best in Angel Di Maria in Real Madrid's UEFA Champions League winning campaign in 2014-15.
Ancelotti is highly regarded in the Spanish capital as he was the manager who guided them to La Decima, Real Madrid's 10th UEFA Champions League title. He also won the Copa Del Rey, FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup with Real Madrid and managed Bayern Munich as well before joining Everton.
However, it remains to be seen if Ancelotti would be willing to drop his Everton project in its nascent stages and make a return to Real Madrid.