Zidane in hot seat
Real Madrid turns to former superstar to rekindle glory
Zinedine Zidane’s appointment as Real Madrid coach in place of Rafa Benitez has handed the club’s former France great his chance to follow up a stellar career on the pitch with management success at the highest level.
Benitez, experienced but unpopular, was abruptly dismissed on Monday less than halfway through the season after an indifferent run of results left the club trailing leader Atletico Madrid and second-placed Barcelona in La Liga.
“We have taken the difficult decision to rescind the contract of Rafael Benitez as coach,” said Madrid president Florentino Perez.
“The Real Madrid board has decided to name Zinedine Zidane as coach of the first team.”
However, the club did not announce the length of Zidane’s contract.
Fan hero Zidane, an elegant figure in stark contrast to his frumpy predecessor, has been promoted from his job as coach of the B team, which plays in the third tier of Spanish soccer.
It will be the 43-year-old French World Cup winner’s first top-flight management role.
The pressure to deliver at a club that expects a regular stream of major silverware will be huge and it remains to be seen whether the decision by Perez to discard Benitez and hand there ins to the relatively green Zidane will pay off.
Benitez, 55, replaced Carlo An ce lot ti at the end of last season after the Italian failed to deliver any of the three main titles in 2014-15, marking the Spaniard’s return to the club where he began his coaching career in the youth ranks.
However, it quickly became clear that his reputation as a detail-obsessed and excessively defensive tactician, whether deserved or not, did not sit well with Real fans.
He failed to consistently deliver the entertaining, attacking soccer they demand and persistent reports in local media that he did not get on with key figures in the dressing room did not help his cause.
Benitez also appears to have been blamed for Real’s expulsion from the King’s Cup for fielding an ineligible player.
When Real was hammered 4-0 at home by archrival Barca in La Liga at the end of November it was the beginning of the end.
Benitez was roundly whistled at Bernabeu in recent months, when fans have also called for Perez to step down.
Perez had publicly backed Benitez despite the growing pressure in recent weeks which saw him routinely jeered by his own fans, but is believed to have finally bowed to the will of the players and supporters.
Zidane is the 11th coach to be appointed under Perez in just over 12 years in two spells in charge of the club.
“As president it is an honor to have Zidane at my side because I know for him the word impossible doesn’t exist,” said Perez.
“Without any doubt Zidane is one of the greatest figures in the history of football.”
Right from the start of his reign in June, Benitez struggled to gain the respect of Madrid’s star-studded squad, with many senior players voicing their displeasure at the fir ing of his predecessor Ancelotti.
A run of three league defeats in five games in November and December, including a 4-0 thrashing at home to Barcelona, wiped away the early credit Benitez had gained with an unbeaten 14-game run to start his tenure.
Further embarrassment was to follow when Madrid was thrown out of the Copa del Rey for fielding an ineligible player last month.
Benitez’s relationship with the dressing room has also failed to improve with key players such as Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez often showing their disgust at being substituted.
And captain Sergio Ramos failed to offer a strong sign of support for Benitez when given the chance after the Valencia game.
“His future doesn’t depend on us,” said the Spanish international.
“Whoever the coach is he will always have the confidence of the players. Whether it is Rafa or anyone else.”
Zidane joined Real from Juventus in August 2001 and helped the club win its ninth European title with a stunning volley against Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002 Champions League final.
A 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship winner with France, he is regarded as one of the most skilled and stylish midfielders to play the game.
His career ended in ignominy in the 2006 World Cup final in Berlin when he was sent off for head-butting Italy defender Marco Materazzi in the chest.
Sharply dressed and soft spoken, he commands the devotion of supporters and huge respect from the players — something Benitez has struggled with during his coaching career in Spain, England and Italy.
Zidane scored a sensational winning goal to hand Madrid the 2002 Champions League as a player, but is short on managerial experience, having only ever taken charge of Madrid’s feeder team, Castilla.
He failed to get Castilla promoted from the third tier of Spanish soccer last season, but it currently lies second in the regional Segunda Division B having lost just two of 19 games this season.
And the Frenchman was part of Ancelotti’s staff when the team won the Champions League and Copa del Rey in 2014.
“We have the best club in the world, the best fans and what we have to do now, and what I will try my best to do, is ensure the team wins at the end of the season,” said Zidane.
“I am more emotional than when I signed as a player, but that is normal and from tomorrow I am going to put my heart into doing all I can for this club.”
Zidane’s first game in charge will be Saturday’s La Liga game at home to seventh-place Deportivo La Coruna.
It’s a safe bet he will be accorded a huge ovation from adoring supporters when he takes the sideline.
Real has been drawn to play AS Roma in Europe’s elite club competition, with the first leg in the Italian capital on Feb 17.