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What's the rumour?
According to Spanish media outlet Marca, three Real Madrid players are being pushed towards exit by Zinedine Zidane due to lack of opportunities. The French manager hardly used them since starting his second stint at the club.
In case you didn't know...
The French legend won everything there is to win in club football except Copa del Rey with Los Blancos in his first stint as manager. Then, Zidane left the club after winning three consecutive Champions League last season but returned just nine months after his departure.
Real Madrid endured an abysmal season considering their sky high standards and they will end the season without any major silverwares. Real Madrid hierarchy sacked two coaches in the current season- both Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari before hiring Zidane back. Los Blancos suffered humiliating defeats to crash out from the Copa del Rey and Champions League and are 13 points behind leaders Barcelona in the LaLiga.
The heart of the matter
Zidane has been in-charged of six games since his return but there are players who he rarely used in these matches, despite the fact that there is little to play for in the current season. The lack of minutes on the pitch could propel the players to seek new destinations in the coming future.
According to the report, midfielders Marcos Llorente and Dani Ceballos are the two clear players who can move out while left-back Reguilon remains another option.
While Llorente was one of the better performers in the current season, Ceballos said last year that if Zidane stayed on as the coach, he would have been looking at other options. Both the midfielders were rarely used during Zidane's first stint and only started in one game after he came back.
Zidane clearly wants Marcelo back at his best which is why even Sergio Reguilon was rarely seen in the past six matches.
Rumour rating: 6/10
Marca is a reliable outlet and it is crystal clear that there will be movements at Real Madrid in the upcoming transfer window.
What's next?
Real Madrid will play Getafe next on the LaLiga.
