Real Madrid are refusing to sack Zidane for one crucial reason

Real Madrid have been tipped to make a decision over Zinedine Zidane and his stay at the club, but off-field reasons may force them to keep him.

Real Madrid have now lost five times in all competitions this season and the defeats have also come against unexpected and low-tier clubs like Alaves, Cadiz and Shakhtar Donetsk. Besides losing on four occasions to smaller sides, Zinedine Zidane saw his side thrashed 4-1 by Valencia ahead of the international break in November.

After a turbulent start to the season, it is no secret that the Frenchman is under pressure and may well be shown the door by the end of this year. Los Blancos are already pondering over how and with which manager they will replace the 48-year-old. However, despite facing a race against time, the club isn’t sacking Zizou due to one major reason.

Zinedine Zidane has a contract at the Santiago Bernabeu that lasts until June 2022 and sees the coach cash-in on 16 million euros annually. In the event that Los Merengues sack the 3-time Champions League winner, they will be forced to cough out close to 25 million euros as part of a severance package for relieving the manager prematurely of his duties.

In the thick of a pandemic, Florentino Perez and the Real Madrid hierarchy are well-aware of how costly a figure 25 million euros could be. As such, the club has agreed on a second round of pay-cuts with its staff and at the end of such a cycle, the money they effectively saved may be spent on the first-team manager’s compensation.

Besides that, Zidane has also been used by Real Madrid as bait to complete some major signings over the last few years, including those of Raphael Varane and Eden Hazard. A move for Kylian Mbappe and a few other of the club’s targets may also be dependent on the legendary footballer’s continuity on the Bernabeu’s hotseat.

Do you think it would be worth keeping Zidane if Real Madrid think wider than on-field matters?