Zinedine Zidane is not the man for Manchester United

Jose Mourinho faces the biggest test of his reign in charge of Manchester United, a match against his old team Chelsea at his old stomping ground, Stamford Bridge.

While rumors of  Zinedane Zidane taking over Manchester United have dissipated, there is still a sense of foreboding that the Frenchmen will eventually take the hot-seat at Old Trafford. However, there are many reasons why the former Real Madrid man is not suitable for United.

Zidane’s reign at Real Madrid was fruitful in terms of trophies won, 3 consecutive Champions League trophies and 9 trophies in total all in a span of 2 years. However, questions linger whether his term at Real was highly successful because he had top talents such as Ronaldo in his team or whether he possessed astute tactical acumen.

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Certainly, he has the respect and authority to command a dressing room which possesses strong egos, that would be an asset should he takeover at Manchester United, with Mourinho’s abrasive approach leading to several key players such as Paul Pogba unhappy and wanting to leave.

In terms of tactics, Zidane has shown the ability to make key substitutions and having worked under Carlo Ancelotti and Jose Mourinho, should have a solid tactical foundation but he is most definitely not a master tactician, one could say that having worked under Mourinho and from what we have seen of his Real Madrid teams of the past that there is no major difference between the two managers in terms of how their teams play.

Hiring Zidane would be a risky approach for the United board, to put it simply the next managerial choice, the board make could make or break the club. United cannot have a manager that leaves the team floundering, they need one that reverts to the attacking tradition of United or the club will suffer in terms of attracting top talent.

Zidane was literally handed the golden ticket to managerial stardom, yes there is great pressure at Real but Zidane commands respect from the fans that past Real managers such as Rafa Benitez couldn’t command. Real finished some 17 points from Barcelona, the winners of La Liga, that simply put would have gotten another other Los Blancos manager sacked instead the fans were revolting against Real President, Florentino Perez.

However, lets talk about the fact that Real Madrid were so far off the pace in La Liga, they often looked clunky and ineffectual in attack, they won the Champions League due to their experience. Zidane deserves credit for the work he has done at Real but with the squad at his disposal, so much more could have been achieved with a better manager.

Zidane is a superb manager but too many questions remain and United this time should the move for a new manager need one with no questions hanging over his head but simply ticks of approval from all associated with Manchester United