The standout fixture of the latest La Liga matchday was the latest edition of the Madrid derby. Real Madrid emerged with an impressive 2-0 victory over city rivals Atlético Madrid. Casemiro opened the scoring in the 15th minute. In the second half, an own goal scored by Jan Oblak off Dani Carvajal's shot that struck the post ensured Real's victory.
Real's win put Los Merengues within three points of Atlético, who currently lead the league. It also eased the pressure on head coach Zinedine Zidane. Rumours that Zidane might soon be fired have been circulating for some time now. They only intensified after a recent slump in form.
However, the events of the derby showed that not only would it be a colossal mistake on Real's part if they were to fire the Frenchman; the club's top brass ought to pull out all the stops to make sure that Zidane remains in the Santiago Bernabéu dugout for the foreseeable future.
Consider the fact that although Zidane was going up against one of the top five overall coaches and perhaps the best pure strategist in the world in his Atlético counterpart Diego Simeone, it was in large part thanks to Zidane that Real Madrid came away victorious. His tactical setup was on point, his substitutions were timely and effective, and he ably adjusted to everything Simeone threw at him. It's not often that a great coach like Simeone is so decisively countered. Yet, that's exactly what happened against Real.
I'd actually say that "Zizou" is the most underrated coach in world football at the moment. After all, no one else has ever led a team to three consecutive Champions League titles - that fact alone speaks for itself. While his detractors may claim that his Real Madrid team of 2016 to 2018 was carried to those titles by Cristiano Ronaldo, consider this: to win those three straight European crowns, Real beat Simeone's Atlético in 2016, Massimiliano Allegri's Juventus in 2017, and Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool in 2018. For those counting, that would be two all-time great coaches and one excellent one.
Last season was Zidane's first full season in his second stint at the helm of Real. Notably, it was also his first full season as Real head coach since Ronaldo's departure for Juve in the 2018 off-season. Despite having a squad which was clearly weaker to that of his first go-around, Zidane led Real to the league title, finishing ahead of arch-rivals Barcelona by five points. This league triumph came despite key players such as Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale missing large portions of the season through injury.
What Zidane had to deal with upon his return to Real cannot be overlooked either. When he replaced Santiago Solari in March 2019, Real were a club in disarray. They were nowhere near either Barça or Atlético in the league. They had also been knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16 after an upset loss against Ajax. Fast forward almost two years later and Real, despite currently trailing Atlético in La Liga, are likely to claim back-to-back league titles for the first time since 2008. They also topped a tough Champions League group containing Inter Milan, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Real's front office is notorious for being trigger-happy with regard to coaches. However, if they break with their history and retain Zidane's services for an extended time period, the club will be likely to experience much current and future success. Given Zidane's track record to date, there is no reason why he shouldn't remain at Real for at least a decade, racking up titles along the way while establishing himself as perhaps the greatest coach in Real's history - and maybe, just maybe, of all time.
It is beyond crucial that Real do not act in their usual knee-jerk manner, especially if results start going against them later in the season. Zidane has clearly built up a body of work which clearly proves that he is an outstanding coach. Firing him would be an epic mistake of almost unparalleled proportions.
The decision should be obvious. Only one question remains: will Real finally "get it", or will they revert to type?
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