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Real Madrid's disastrous season continued as they were knocked out of Copa Del Rey by Leganes on Wednesday night.
Zidane named a weakened team to protect their 1-0 advantage from the reverse leg. Goals from Javier Eraso and Gabriel Pires allowed Leganes to knock out the reigning European Champions out of the competition.
Javier Eraso opened the scoring with a wonderful curler in the 31st minute. Benzema equalized early in the second half. A header from Gabriel Pires was enough to help Leganes advance to the semi-finals for the first time in the club's history.
Pressure builds on Real Madrid as Paris Saint Germain approach for a do or die showdown in the Champions League. A defeat to French leaders could be au revoir for Zinedine Zidane.
So, what is going on with Real Madrid and Zidane? Why the team that looked unbeatable at the start of the season struggling to win games?
How did he land the job?
When Real Madrid turned to Zidane following the dismissal of Rafa Benitez in 2015, the whole world was shocked. He was too inexperienced to make a good fist of it.
His CV was scanty. He had sat on the dugout with Carlo Ancelotti as an assistant for a year. But he had a little to do.
His record with Castilla, Real Madrid's B team, wasn't prodigious either. They failed to get a promotion.
Then, he pulled a rabbit out of the hat. Real Madrid won 11th Champion League trophy in May. In the next season, he secured Real Madrid a first league title since 2011-12, won back-to-back Champions League trophy, and the team went on a record 40 games undefeated.
Tactics
Many pundits describe Zinedine Zidane as a mere inspirational presence not a genuinely good manager.
This date back to the 2016 Champions League final. During the build-up, Real Madrid players were asked one interesting question: What was different about Zidane? How is leadership standing out from the rest?
Everyone fulsomely answered were pointing out at two things, "intensity" and "feeling". No player said anything about his tactical approach, and that was because there wasn't any.
This is hard to explain.
If you can look at Real Madrid's performance - bar from the result- then it is clearly visible. Under Zidane, Real Madrid doesn't play with a tactical plan and are over-reliant on their forwards.
When the front three goes missing so does the whole team: something that has happened this season.
The Luck Factor
The point above springs one question in readers mind did Zidane just run out of luck?
The luck factor takes forms: scoring late goals, winning games on bad days, squad depth, and having a player on an incredible form (remember Brendon Rodgers and Luis Suarez).
"Maybe last year we won some games we didn't deserve,” says Zidane earlier this year. “Now it's the other way around.”
He is right. Now things are another way around. His team can't win despite playing well, and his star players are missing games due to injury or suspension.
There is only so much you can win with luck; you eventually bound to run out of it.
Transfer Window
I don't think there is a better way, to sum up, Real Madrid's summer transfer business other than disastrous.
Last summer, they sold Alvaro Morata (to Chelsea), James Rodriguez (loaned to Bayern Munich), Pepe (on a free to Besiktas), Mariano (to Lyon) and Danilo (to Manchester City). Everyone on that list is not just capable deputies. They are the players who can make a difference coming on from the Bench.
Morata scored 20 goals last season, most of them where late winners. Zidane refused to sign a backup player in the hopes of signing Mbappe, who eventually joined PSG. Now he has to depend on 20-year-old Borja Mayoral to provide cover.
Meanwhile, Mariano, who didn't get a run in Real Madrid first team, is bagging goals for fun for Lyon. He has already scored 13 times this season.
James netted 12 times and assisted eight goals despite reduced play time. To ask young Dani Ceballos to step in for him was another colossal mistake.
Real Madrid didn't sign a replacement for Danilo either. During Carvajal's injury and heart problems, Zidane was forced to call-up 18-year-old Achraf Hakimi from the academy.
Finally, Real Madrid's plan to replace experienced Pepe with academy product Jesús Vallejo hasn't worked out well either..
Family Favors
Many people at Real Madrid who believe Zidane favors his children above other.This was very evident this transfer window.
Real Madrid were reportedly keen to sign goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from Athletic Bilbao before Zidane pulled the plug. Kepa is one of the rising stars in Spanish football and is expected to make into the World Cup squad.
Kepa even rejected a new deal from Athletic Club to join Real Madrid. But Zidane didn't sanction the transfer.
Kepa has since changed his mind signed a long-term contract with the club.
According to Spanish outlet, Sport, Zidane didn't want to sign Kepa because he wants to promote his son Luca Zidane to the first team. Zidane believes signing Kepa will hinder his son's development. Luca is famous for making high profile errors in games for Castilla.
Zidane faced the same criticism with his other son Enzo. Many believe Enzo was given an unfair advantage over others. Enzo has proven this since he left the club. Alaves, who signed Enzo in the summer, let Enzo go in just six months. He now plays for Swiss side, Lausanne.
While Zidane as a father might feel the need to protect his children, his personal preferences are costing Real Madrid big time.
Conclusion
Football is a game of results. It doesn't matter what you are doing, as long as you are winning games, your job is safe and you'll be loved by everyone. This is the reason why Jose Mourinho just got a new bumper contract at Manchester United despite playing in the "United Way". It is the same reason why Claudio Ranieri was fired by Leicester despite winning the league just a few months earlier.
By no means, the purpose of this article is to imply Zidane doesn't deserve to be the manager of Real Madrid. Zidane has done exceptionally well since taking charge of the clubs. Eight trophies in two seasons and a win rate of over 70% proves it. He has results on his side.
The purpose of this article is to show that Zidane still needs to learn a lot as a manager. The author also likes to point out that he can't field a team as he did against Leganes which left fans screaming blue murder. He also needs to put the team before everything else.The author sincerely hope Real Madrid will be able to put their current form behind them and turn things around.
