If you type the phrase ‘Is Zinedine Zidane’ into the Google search bar, the auto-completes first suggestion is ‘…a good manager?’
Outside of wondering what kind of person asks Google if someone is a good manager or not, a quick search suggests that, at least at the very surface level, he is.
With three consecutive Champions League titles to his name, Zidane has achieved something that no one else in footballing history has. Whatever else he may be, it would seem rash to question Zidane’s ability as a coach.
But four years after making his managerial debut with Real Madrid’s Castilla team, the Frenchman continues to divide opinion.
Does his CV so far recommend him as potentially one of the best up-and-coming talents in the managerial game? Or, as some have put it, was he simply lucky to have been put in charge of one of the most impressive football teams the world has ever seen?
With Zidane stepping down from his role at the end of last season and Julen Lopetegui taking over, you might think that we are in a better place to assess Zidane’s managerial ambition. The question is this: what does Julen Lopetegui’s Real Madrid tell us about Zinedine Zidane?
Real Madrid are struggling, but is Julen Lopetegui really worse than Zidane?
Real Madrid are struggling - but don't blame Julen Lopetegui just yet