Zinedine Zidane has resigned as coach of Real Madrid, days after leading Los Blancos to their third consecutive Champions League title. The decision was announced in a news conference announced abruptly just an hour ahead of time. After joining Real Madrid in January 2016, his work concludes after three seasons and as winner of nine titles. To replace Zidane, the club could turn to an internal candidate: at the moment the clearest choices are Santiago Solari and Guti, but there could be other alternatives. President Florentino Perez is considering the profile of Mauricio Pochettino, who has just extended his contract with Spurs and will not be easy to poach. Reports in Spain indicate that a release clause could be included in case of an offer made by Real Madrid. However the Times has reported that no such clause exists in the new contract. Also Antonio Conte could become an option as the club considers its path forward. There has not been contact made yet, but deliberations will be underway with the job suddenly becoming open.
The news came out before the start of the press conference, and it was then confirmed by Zidane himself: "I love this club and its president very much. I made the decision not to continue this journey. It's a strange moment but this club needs a change to be able to continue winning, it needs something different, another way of working. For that reason I made this decision."
President Florentino Perez also spoke: "After the Champions League win this was a possibility but we can only see and respect the coach's decision. The decision really shocked me when I learned of it, I would have liked to tried to convince him to change his mind but I know the type of person he is. I want to thank him for what he has done. If he needs to rest he deserves it."
