Why Zinedine Zidane might leave after the 2020-21 season
Real Madrid have Zinedine Zidane to thank for making it as far as they did in the Champions League. Their campaign seemed doomed to end in the group stages at one point, as Los Blancos lost twice to Shakhtar Donetsk and faced a must-win match against Borussia Monchengladbach.
They won that match handily 2-0 and then went on an incredible run of form. And those wins over Sevilla and Atletico Madrid have set up Los Merengues nicely in the final matches of the season. For all their flaws, Real are still within striking distance of back-to-back La Liga crowns – a feat which seemed impossible before Zidane returned to the dugout.
Despite Zidane’s success and the admiration he is receiving even beyond Madrid, he could decide to walk away from the club on his own terms for a second time.
Goal.com’s Mario Cortegana reports that those within the Real Madrid dressing room are getting the feeling that Zinedine Zidane will leave the club one year before his contract officially runs out at the end of the 2021-2022 season.
Zinedine Zidane seems exhausted from running Real Madrid in these conditions
Cortegana cites a few reasons for why Zidane would want to leave. He is “tired” and “even annoyed”. The difficulty of navigating the COVID-19 protocols, the major injuries, the constant fixtures one after another, and the harsh and unwarranted insults of some members f the press are weighing on Zidane.
We’re hearing the word “burnout” more frequently during this pandemic, including in football. And it would not surprise me if Zidane is burned out from having to operate under these conditions, stressed to perform at the highest level. And the little things he enjoys about running a club, he can no longer do because of the COVID-19 guidelines, as pointed out by Cortegana.
Although Real Madrid fans would be sad to see Zidane go, they would understand his decision and graciously thank him for guiding the club through an extremely difficult period. Los Blancos did not even make any signings last summer, yet Zidane still had them in position to compete in the Champions League and La Liga in spite of injuries and depth issues.
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Zidane deserves a break. And Cortegana points out that the next logical step in his career could be upgrading the French national team’s coaching situation by replacing Didier Deschamps.
That’s all conjecture, of course. Zidane’s future is uncertain, but what is certain is that he will give it his all until the end. There is still a title race to be won.