7 club legends who could return as managers
Zinedine Zidane has thrived in his nascent career in charge of Real Madrid It’s every fan’s dream. The scenario of a player who thrilled and delighted them on the pitch, thus earning a permanent place in their hearts, then coming back and taking charge of the club as a manager, and going on to win scores of trophies for the club.Zinedine Zidane is halfway through that scenario; the French legend enchanted the Bernabeu faithful with his 5 year spell as a player, and has returned to take the reins from the much-maligned Rafa Benitez, and has overseen two games with an overall aggregate score of 10-1. Not bad for a managerial rookie.With Zizou’s bright start to life in the Los Blancos hot seat, are there more legends who could follow in his path? With Diego Simeone and Luis Enrique managing Atletico Madrid and Barcelona respectively, perhaps La Liga is setting a trend for the rest of football to follow.Here are 5 club legends from European football who could quite conceivably end up as managers of their respective clubs:
#1 Ryan Giggs (Manchester United)
Ryan Giggs has a history of coming to Manchester United's rescue as a player. His iconic bare-chested celebration after a mazing solo run that ended up in a winning goal for Manchester United in a FA Cup semifinal replay against old foes Arsenal at Villa Park has gone down in footballing folklore.
When David Moyes was leading the Red Devils down a very mediocre path, the United board took the decision of sacking him, and appointing their man for all crises, Ryan Giggs as interim manager. With four games remaining in the season, Giggs had a modest start to his managerial career, winning two out of the four games and overseeing a defeat and draw in the other two.
Given that Giggs, by his own admission, admitted to being unable to sleep during this period in charge of Manchester United, there are a few doubts about his suitability for the managerial role. One person who is not in any doubt is Giggs' immediate superior, Louis van Gaal.
Speaking in April last year, the Dutchman revealed that he expects Gigg's to succeed him, saying "I expect that he [Giggs] will be the next manager after I am gone."
The 63-year-old also added, "Now I have the responsibility. He [Giggs] has tasks that he has to perform like the players. What he has to do, for me, he does it very well."