On March 11, Spanish club Real Madrid announced that they would be firing former manager Santiago Solari and replace him with Zinedine Zidane immediately. This marks a second reign of leadership the Frenchman will have with the club as coach (he managed Real Madrid from the 2016-2018 seasons which resulted in nine trophies). Zidane left in May of 2018 just days after he helped secure a third consecutive Champions League title. This was the last time football fans and supporters ever saw Real Madrid on top of Europe. Since then, things have gone South for the Spanish giants.
The defending champions have been knocked out of both the Copa Del Rey and Champions League competitions. The La Liga club is also 12 points behind league leaders and arch-rivals Barcelona (which only adds more pain). Saying things have fallen apart at Real Madrid is an understatement. I can't think of many moments in which the team was this low. Real Madrid is one of (if not) the biggest soccer club in the world. They are more than a club. It's an iconic, brand-name powerhouse which has always had a long history of success.
So, seeing them lose over and over again is a weird thing to witness as a football fan. In my opinion, I think Zidane will alleviate some of Madrid's issues to a certain degree. I am almost 100 percent sure he will be able to fix the chemistry issues in the locker room. Players on the team have mentioned how much they enjoy playing for Zidane. He brings out the best in the squad and every player is content with their involvement on the field. Now I'm not going to be unrealistic and say Zidane is going to win Champions League for Real Madrid next season, but you never know.
The key thing to watch in the off-season is how much money Real Madrid is willing to spend. They have historically always been big spenders in the transfer window periods. To me, that is the crucial component of whether or not things will turn around for the club. Money (and lots of it) most of the time equals success in sports. Team President Florentino Perez has to open up his checkbook and allow Zidane to go all-out to get whatever he needs to change things at Real Madrid. If this happens, I have no doubts in my mind that Los Blancos will eventually return to being on top of the world.
All I know is that if Zidane restores the glory days at Real Madrid, people should start calling him "the special one" and not Jose Mourinho anymore.
