Real Madrid have not had plan in place for the managerial position next season since Xabi Alonso left in January. Los Blancos are in the midst of their search for Alvaro Arbeloa’s successor, who looks as if he will not continue in the senior position beyond the end of the year.
Arbeloa was given the chance to prove himself after being promoted from the Castilla position in January as an emergency alternative to Alonso. Despite briefly inspiring a reaction in the Champions League, a number of disappointing results against La Liga’s more modest opposition has sentenced his spell.
Florentino Perez called Zinedine Zidane after Alonso decision
Whenever the Real Madrid job comes up, club legend Zinedine Zidane is inevitably mentioned, having had two very successful spells as head coach, in which he has delivered three Champions Leagues. He resigned in 2022 though, declaring that he did not feel the full backing of the board in the transfer window.
As per Diario AS, Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has already tried to bring him back though. They say that after the decision was made to sack Alonso, Perez reached out to Zidane to see if he would be interested in taking over again. This occurred in December, but Zidane informed them that he was already committed to taking the reins of the French national team after the 2026 World Cup, when Didier Deschamps is due to exit.
Deschamps among candidates for Real Madrid job
To add to the intrigue, Deschamps has been mentioned as one of the candidates to replace Arbeloa. Again this week links to Jurgen Klopp were shut down by sources close to the club, leaving Jose Mourinho as one of the favourites for the job. Deschamps ranks highly in a group of secondary choices that includes Mauricio Pochettino, Unai Emery and Massimiliano Allegri.
