FC Bayern is looking for a new coach for next season. Zinédine Zidane is said to be a candidate. A name that inspires – but does it fit?
It was news that caused a stir: Thomas Tuchel has to vacate his position as coach of FC Bayern in the summer. A few days before this decision was announced, the record champions are said to have dealt with Zinédine Zidane.
First a world star on the pitch, then a world coach on the sidelines – he would be an asset to the entire Bundesliga. But how likely is it really that Zidane will come to Munich? And could that even fit?
The first reports came from Italy from “Corriere dello Sport”, then “Bild” and Sky took over here in Germany. The name Zidane has already been discussed at Bayern, but contact has not yet been made. A delicate matter overall, because immediately after the 2-3 disgrace against VfL Bochum, CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen gave Tuchel a guarantee that he would at least be on the bench against Leipzig next Saturday (read more about that here) . Then came the decision to separate at the end of the season.
There is no question that Zidane could FC Bayern. The Frenchman has won everything there is to win with Real Madrid, including the Champions League three times. He knew how to work with a team full of stars and how to curb egos like Cristiano Ronaldo’s. His big advantage: Zinédine Zidane also won everything as a player, including becoming world champion in 1998. People look up to him and have great respect. The Bayern stars also knew that from day one.
Zidane once sat in on Säbener Strasse
The “Bild” reported that Zidane is following the current developments at Bayern with interest. Fittingly: The former world-class player sat in on Säbener Straße in March 2015, when Bayern were still being coached by Pep Guardiola. “Bayern is a big club, one of the top 5 in the world, but at the same time it has remained very familiar. I am very impressed,” he said at the time. Has anything changed about that? Bayern have dominated the Bundesliga in recent years and have also caused a stir in Europe. This shouldn’t have gone unnoticed by Zinédine Zidane either – despite the current Bayern crisis.
One barrier might be that Zidane doesn’t speak German. In addition to French, he has a perfect command of Italian and Spanish. And: He hasn’t accepted a job offer since leaving Real Madrid in the summer of 2021 – although there have been a few. Among other things, rumors often circulated about a move to the desert, and Zidane’s name is mentioned again and again when it comes to a possible replacement for the French or Algerian national teams. Zidane has Algerian roots and is said to have rejected a million-dollar offer from the Algerian association in January, as beIN Sports reported.
But he left no doubt about wanting to work as a coach again in the future: “It’s always my goal to become a coach again. At the moment I’m taking more time for other things. But the goal is to come back.” Is the goal in the end perhaps FC Bayern?
One thing is clear: Zidane is the most sought-after bachelor coach on the market and can choose his next position in peace.