3 Reasons Why Zinedine Zidane Won't Replace Jose Mourinho at Manchester United

The Premier League season is only three games old but Manchester United are already in turmoil. Sitting in 13th place after two consecutive losses, the Red Devils have had their worst start to the season in 25 years.

Adding to the turbulence is manager Jose Mourinho, under immense pressure to deliver but making it very clear that he has not received support from the board, specifically executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.

The Portuguese boss had cut a surly figure since the first day of pre-season and was hung out to dry when his request for a big-name centre-back was turned down due to the finances involved.

Now, with the pressure mounting and with rivals Manchester City and Liverpool looking far more complete as a squad, the odds on Mourinho getting the sack have been slashed and a number of potential (and available) candidates have been listed as the man to replace him at Old Trafford.

3 - @SpursOfficial's win tonight marks Jose Mourinho's biggest ever home defeat as a manager in any competition. Trounced. #MUNTOT pic.twitter.com/S5vXMCEpdo

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 27, 2018

Among them is a manager who has won the last three Champions League titles to become the competition's most successful manager of all time - Zinedine Zidane. The former Real Madrid boss, who shocked the world when he stepped down after a hat-trick of European titles, is currently without a job.

But will the Frenchman be next in line to take over at the Premier League's most successful club, possibly even this season? Here are a few indicators that it might not happen.

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#1 Lost in translation? Zidane doesn't communicate in English

Having lived in Spain for more than a decade, Zidane speaks Spanish apart from his native French

Apart from a few sentences that Zidane has spoken in English in commercials or the like, the Frenchman is quite the stranger to the language. Having spent years in Madrid as a player and a manager, he has learned to speak Spanish.

Even at post-match press conferences, Zidane requires an interpreter to translate questions put to him in English. And, in return, he answers the said questions in Spanish.

So for him to saunter into the Old Trafford dressing room and require an interpreter to put forth his ideas would make things quite difficult. It may work to a certain extent at the training ground but it is destined to fail on matchday - let alone press conferences.

Other managers who came to the Premier League initially started learning English before they took up the job. Managers such as Mauricio Pochettino and Antonio Conte struggled at first but have since managed to find success after learning the language.

Zidane is keen on taking a year off before he takes up his next job. Unless he is learning English during his time off, it doesn't make sense to appoint him now.

Bonus: Here's a video of his half-time team talk when Real Madrid beat Juventus in the Champions League. Have a look at Welshman Gareth Bale who probably struggled to comprehend everything his manager said at half-time.

Now, imagine an interpreter trying to relay Zidane's ideas to the players.

#2 Manchester United's squad needs work before it can be handed over to Zidane

Will David De Gea and Antonio Valencia be at Manchester United next season?

One of the primary reasons why Zidane succeeded at Real Madrid was the fact that he inherited arguably the most talented squad of this generation. As a former player and club legend, all he needed to do was manage a few egos in the dressing room and the players responded to his ideas.

With players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Isco, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, and Sergio Ramos forming the spine, there was little he needed to add to improve the squad.

The only senior players signed on his watch were Alvaro Morata, Theo Hernandez, and Dani Ceballos - all of whom were mere backups to the talents he had at his disposal.

On the other hand, United's squad is in desperate need of a rejig. While they do have plenty of talented players in attack, some even world-class, it is the defensive players that need to be replaced.

Almost the entire back-line could change over the course of this season. Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young are in the final year of their contract while their best player David De Gea is no closer to extending his own contract beyond this season.

If he were to come in and take the reins now, Zidane will have to wait at least until next summer before he can bring in new players that can buy into his philosophy.

For a man taking a break from the stressful job of managing a football club, United may not be at the top of the list of clubs he will want to manage when he makes a return.

#3 Will United even sack Mourinho midway through the season?

Can Jose Mourinho turn things around?

The fact that Mourinho's campaigns usually crash and burn in his third season is what has many of the United faithful biting their fingernails. This is his third season in the Old Trafford hot seat and all the signs point in only one direction.

In the past, Mourinho at least had a league title to show for it. But a trophyless season with the Red Devils makes his current situation all the more palpable.

But will the club take the decision to sack him now rather than later? History suggests they will not. They did not give David Moyes time but he was clearly not a fit for the club while Louis van Gaal was given until the end of his last season to prove himself.

Sacking a manager after the transfer window has closed effectively ties the hands of the next manager. And sacking a manager now - especially after the club finished second last season with their best points haul since Sir Alex Ferguson's time - is a sign of trust lost when the board needs to back him.

After failing to back the manager when he craved new signings, they cannot sack him now. Barring a Mourinhoesque collapse a la Chelsea 2015, Mourinho will continue as manager of Manchester United - at least until the summer of 2019.