Kiko Casilla opens up on how Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema took action to not disappoint former Real Madrid head coach

Former Real Madrid goalkeeper Kiko Casilla has outlined how Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema reacted to Zinedine Zidane's appointment as Los Blancos manager. The legendary Frenchman took charge of Real Madrid Castilla in 2014, and was promoted to the senior team in January 2016.

Zidina was selected as Rafael Benitez's replacement following a poor start to the campaign. The former French midfielder, who was already an iconic figure from his playing days, took over a squad of superstars, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema.

Speaking to MARCA, Casilla added that the duo took their game to a higher level following Zidane's arrival.

“When Zidane arrived, with the ‘aura’ around him, players like Cristiano and Benzema took another little step forward because they did not want to disappoint him,” said Casilla.

Zidane oversaw a highly successful spell with the LaLiga giants. He guided Los Blancos to the famous Champions League three-peat, winning the title three times on the go from 2016 to 2018.

The Frenchman also won the league, the UEFA Super Cup, the Supercopa de Espana and the FIFA Club World Cup during his first stint. Zidane's reign at Real Madrid initially ended in the summer of 2018.

Interestingly, Cristiano Ronaldo also left Los Blancos that summer to move to Juventus. The French manager, meanwhile, took charge at the Santiago Bernabeu once again in March 2019.

However, Zidane's second stint with the LaLiga giants lacked the magic of his first spell. While the team won the league in the 2019/20 campaign, they failed to impress in Europe, and the Frenchman vacated his position in the summer of 2021.

How many goals did Cristiano Ronaldo score for Real Madrid under Zinedine Zidane?

Cristiano Ronaldo appeared 114 times for Real Madrid under Zinedine Zidane, scoring 112 goals and setting up 30 more. The Portuguese superstar was a key ingredient of the French manager's immensely successful first tenure with the LaLiga giants.

Los Blancos opted to offload Ronaldo to Juventus in the summer of 2018, with the Bianconeri reportedly paying £99.2m for the player. By the time he left, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner had scored 451 goals from 438 games for Real Madrid, the most in the club's history.

Ronaldo spent three seasons at Turin, winning the Serie A twice, among others. He returned to Manchester United in 2021 for a second spell at Old Trafford, but made an unceremonious exit in December 2022 to join Al-Nassr.

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Edited by Deepungsu Pandit