Zinedine Zidane reveals only three teams he’ll manage

Zinedine Zidane has become the subject of intense interest after Manchester United and Bayern Munich were linked to the former Real Madrid manager. 

With Thomas Tuchel stepping down in the summer for Bayern and United entering another new era under minority owner Jim Ratcliffe, the name of Zidane became rapidly involved in both projects. 

His status as an elite coach has yet to be impacted by the fact that he has not held a managerial job since 2021, the memories of his Madrid side which won three Champions Leagues in a row are no longer fresh but remain ever influential. 

Despite this Thomas Gravesen, his former teammate at Madrid, has cast doubt on Zidane’s interest in the roles he’s been linked with. Speaking to Discovery+ , Gravesen stated that “ I spoke to Zidane two years ago and he told me that there were only three roles he would like to accept: they are Marseille, Madrid, and the French team .” 

Gravesen continued, “ We were in Madrid two years ago and he told me exactly that. I also asked him if he was ready to coach again. And he told me that there were no possibilities for these three .”

It’s been no secret that Zidane has been waiting for the call of the French national team but with Didier Deschamps yet to slow down it appears a distant prospect. The offer at Olympique de Marseille would likely always be there for its native son, but the rumour is that he will only take the offer on the contingency that the club is taken over by new owners . 

GFFN | Nick Hartland