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It is never easy to manage one of the most celebrated clubs in the world, is it? And that too when the club is as prestigious as Real Madrid and the fans as demanding as Madridistas.
In case you want to experience a shade of the adversity that comes with such a high profile managerial job, put yourself in Zidane's shoes.
The Frenchman joined Los Blancos on 4th January 2016, following the sacking of Rafa Benitez. The appointment was questioned by innumerable football experts, who raised objections to Zidane's experience as a manager (or lack thereof), and his stint with Real Madrid Castilla, which had not been very promising.
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However, it did not take very long for the Frenchman to silence the critics as he went on to win La Undécima in that very season. Moreover, Real Madrid finished runners-up in La Liga, a point behind Barcelona, a position which seemed improbable when Zidane joined Los Blancos in January 2016.
In the following season, Real Madrid's success was remarkable. The former Galactico inspired them to their first La Liga title since 2011-12, La Duodécima, the 2016 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2016 UEFA Super Cup. All the same, the decline was yet to come.
The 2017-18 season saw an auspicious start as Los Blancos triumphed over Manchester United and Barcelona to clinch the UEFA Super Cup and the Supercopa de España, respectively. Nevertheless, it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows for Zidane. Pratfalls lurked ahead and the Frenchman was quick to fall for them.
Real Madrid underwent a terrible run in La Liga and they are currently 19 points adrift (albeit, with a game in hand) of their arch-rivals, Barcelona, who are the league leaders with 57 points. On top of that, Los Blancos were knocked out by minnows Leganes from the Spanish Cup on Wednesday.
As Real Madrid's dreadful run continues interminably, Zidane's job is at serious risk and he had no qualms in accepting that.
"Of course. That is really clear," was his statement when asked if his job was on the line.
On that note, here we take a look at the top 5 reasons which might lead to Zidane's dismissal:
#5 Florentino Perez's penchant for jettisoning managers
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez's impatience with his managers is quite well-known and the Spanish tycoon is quick to react whenever Real Madrid experience a slide. Consequently, Real Madrid's managerial position has been shouldered by 6 different managers in the last decade.
Unsurprisingly, Zinedine Zidane himself was appointed after Rafa Benitez was relieved of his managerial responsibilities in 2016. In a later interview, the Spanish manager was highly critical of Florentino Perez as he attributed Real Madrid's dearth of La Liga titles in the past decade to the Spaniard's overactivity.
It seems that Perez's unease will be a significant factor in Zidane's potential dismissal.
#4 Fans clamouring for a change
"You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain"
The aforementioned quote perfectly sums up Zidane's impression in the eyes of many.
As stated previously, the fans at the Bernabeu are quite demanding and usually do not agree on anything less than the best.
Real Madrid's miserable run this season has inevitably resulted in Zidane receiving a lot of flak from Madridistas. As Real Madrid continue to flounder, a number of Madridistas are calling for a managerial change.
Barring a miraculous turnaround, the number of calls for Zidane's head is only bound to increase. As such, it seems highly unlikely that Zidane will be able to continue for long amid such intense retaliation from the fans.
#3 Slipshod approach towards transfers
After an awe-inspiring 2016-17 season, Zidane made a blunder by offloading some of the most renowned players of Real Madrid, the likes of which included Alvaro Morata, James Rodriguez, Pepe, Danilo, Mariano Diaz and Fabio Coentrao.
The absence of these has significantly contributed to Los Blancos' debacle and Zidane must be kicking himself for not holding on to these players.
Also read: Top 5 players Real Madrid should've retained in the 2017 summer transfer window
Other than that, Zidane's approach in the January transfer window has also been blameworthy.
Despite Real Madrid's ongoing fiasco, the Frenchman has refused to sign any new players in the ongoing transfer window. Both, Eden Hazard and Kepa Arrizabalaga were highly rumoured to join Real Madrid this January, nonetheless, Zidane refused to back-pedal.
#2 Real Madrid's appalling form in La Liga
As mentioned in the initial slide, Real Madrid are 19 points behind Barcelona in La Liga, having won only 11 out of their 20 games.
Los Blancos have managed to accumulate only 38 points in La Liga this season, which means they are 2 points behind Valencia and 8 points behind Atletico Madrid, with a game in hand.
According to many football pundits, Zidane is the man to be blamed for this terrible form.
Nothing has worked for him this season. His tactics have proved miserable. His bias towards a couple of players have also raised a lot of questions. Other than that, he has been quite stubborn this season despite regular flak and opposition.
Zidane has clung to a specific group of players this season and that has adversely affected Real Madrid as most of them have been shadows of their former selves so far.
It is high time Zidane gives up his obstinate attitude otherwise he might be could very well be shown the door soon.
#1 Early exit from Copa del Rey
Now, this one was a huge blow for Los Blancos as they were dumped out of Copa del Rey on Wednesday, by Leganes at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The Spanish cup was one of the few cups Real Madrid were determined to clinch after their unfavourable form in La Liga and drawing Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League.
Zidane's overconfidence in the match against Leganes was one of the factors which led to Los Blancos being ignominiously knocked out of the Copa del Rey. Real Madrid kicked off with a team that did not comprise the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, Marcelo and a few others, making the upset seemingly inevitable.
Real Madrid being humbled by minnows Leganes might be one of the final nails in Zidane's coffin - something that has convinced most people that it won't be long before Florentino Perez steps in to do the needful.
