Real Madrid: 3 reasons why Raul is the best choice to succeed Zinedine Zidane

Real Madrid can continue to build their identity

The youth teams at Real Madrid usually utilize the same 4-3-3 and take on the same attacking principles and core identities of the club so that transition up the ranks can be as seamless as possible. This is common among successful youth sides around European football.

Zinedine Zidane got his start in the youth system of Real Madrid as a manager after being a legend for the club. Raul can take a similar path with Los Blancos en route to managing the team in the 2021-2022 season.

There’s something to be said about this kind of continuity and stability. Bayern Munich are well-known for grooming and hiring former players to executive positions, and that’s what has helped lead to a simple succession plan and a cohesive team-building strategy throughout the years.

Real Madrid are more of a carousel in that regard, but you can see Florentino Perez has the makings of doing this if he’d like to. He has a wide variety of talent to draw upon, such as Raul and Xabi Alonso as future managers or even Iker Casillas in the front office.

So why not pick Raul and try to build around a cool-headed, 43-year-old former striker and manager who is known for his leadership qualities? Raul has some of what has made Zidane so successful in the “dugout”.