Ruben Amorim is under enormous pressure at Manchester United following their latest defeat at Brentford, and Zinedine Zidane has once again been linked with taking over at Old TraffordZinedine Zidane is linked with becoming Manchester United manager(Image: Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
Once again, Zinedine Zidane’s name has cropped up in the intensifying conversation around who would be in line to become the next manager of Manchester United.
This time it is Ruben Amorim who could find himself on the chopping block. The Portuguese coach took over at United less than 12 months ago but has started his first full season in charge with one win, two draws, and three defeats.
Amorim’s side have also been eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Grimsby Town in the second round, plus failure to qualify for any European competitions for this campaign has only highlighted the importance of results in the league.
A real debate is growing around the current manager’s tenure and should he be replaced, Zidane is one of the early possible candidates.
The 53-year-old former World Cup winner as a player is currently without a manager’s job, as has been the case since he left Real Madrid for a second time in 2021.
And it is his record in the Spanish capital that make him such an attractive proposition for the next appointment at Old Trafford.
During his first spell in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu between 2016 and 2018, Zidane finished with a 70 per cent winning record. He won nine of his trophies during this period, including his Champions League three-peat spanning 2016, 2017, and 2018.
Real won finals against Atletico Madrid, Juventus, and Liverpool as the Frenchman became the only coach in history to win the competition that many times in succession.
During his second stint with Los Blancos, Zidane then earned a 60 per cent winning rate. He won two more trophies to take his grand total with the club to 11, and ultimately he went unbeaten across the nine finals he contested.
Ruben Amorim oversaw another disappointing afternoon for Manchester United as they lost at Brentford on Saturday (Image: Getty Images)
Overall, Zidane’s winning record as Real manager across both spells in charge came to 66 per cent.
What’s more, United supporters can revel in Zidane’s personal record in the dugout against some of Europe’s toughest opponents.
During his time with Real, he never lost in six visits to Camp Nou – the home of major rivals Barcelona. He also never lost in three trips to cross-city rivals Atletico Madrid’s new home, the Wanda Metropolitano.
That said, it must be acknowledged the Frenchman was in the losing dugout for the club’s final ever visit to Atleti’s former home, the Vicente Calderon. That was a Champions League semi-final second leg meeting, and Real advanced to the final anyway.
In visits to Germany with Real, Zidane went unbeaten in two visits each to Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena and Borussia Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion.
And elsewhere Zidane’s mastery of the toughest challenges included going without defeat on visits to Anfield to face Liverpool, Juventus’ Allianz Stadium, and the San Siro, where Inter Milan were his adversary.