Zinedine Zidane ‘could be set to return to Juventus as manager’ with club legend lined up to replace Andrea Pirlo with Frenchman’s second spell at Real Madrid fizzling out after Champions League exit to Chelsea
- Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid exited the Champions League in tame fashion
- Defeat to Chelsea could spell the end of Zidane’s second spell as their manager
- Andrea Pirlo is set to leave Juventus after a disappointing campaign for them
- And reports in Italy suggest club legend Zidane could be the man to come in
- Frenchman is highly regarded in Turin and Juventus tried to hire him in 2019
Zinedine Zidane ‘is being seriously considered as a replacement for Andrea Pirlo at Juventus’ as his time as Real Madrid manager draws to its natural conclusion.
Real’s tame loss to Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals last week has only heightened speculation the Frenchman will depart in the summer – even though he has one year remaining on his contract.
And reports in Italy suggest that the Juventus club legend could be set for a romantic return to Turin, with Pirlo set to depart his post following a disappointing season.
Zinedine Zidane ‘could become Juventus manager’ as his time at Real Madrid draws to its natural conclusion after their Champions League exit to Chelsea
Zidane is a club legend at Juventus and would be welcomed back as their manager
Real were well beaten at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, losing 2-0 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate as hopes of another Champions League final disappeared.
Zidane’s side could yet retain their LaLiga title. They are two points behind leaders Atletico Madrid and level on points with Barcelona with four matches left to play.
Zidane, 48, has an exit clause in his Real contract and, according to Italian newspaper Tuttosport, Juventus is an appealing proposition for the next step in his coaching career.
The former midfielder played 214 matches for Juventus between 1996 and 2001, scoring 31 goals and winning two Serie A titles as well as reaching two Champions League finals.
It’s been a disappointing campaign for Andrea Pirlo with Juventus losing their league title
Real were second best to Chelsea over the two legs and ultimately lost 3-1 on aggregate
Zidane has an exit clause in his contract and would be able to leave Real Madrid this summer
He would be forced to take a reduction in salary, however. Real currently pay Zidane £10.5million per season whereas Juventus will reportedly offer around £6.5m but with bonuses.
The Juventus president Andrea Agnelli tried to persuade Zidane to come to the club back in 2019 and he would certainly be a popular appointment with the fans.
It hasn’t been a good season for Pirlo with Juventus surrendering their league title to Inter Milan and also exiting the Champions League to Porto at the last-16 stage.
