Man Utd given ‘no chance’ of landing Zidane despite Ratcliffe making ‘irrefutable offer’
Man Utd have ‘no chance’ of landing former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane as Erik ten Hag’s successor, according to reports.
The Red Devils have won seven of their last nine matches in all competitions with their results becoming more consistent under Ten Hag, although Jamie Carragher and other pundits are still not convinced by their performances.
Despite their good run of form, new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe – who is now in charge of the footballing operation at Old Trafford – is reportedly not completely convinced by Ten Hag and could plan a change of manager in the summer.
And Zidane has been heavily linked to Ten Hag’s job this week with French publication Foot Mercato initially breaking the news that Ratcliffe is interested in the former Real Madrid manager.
However, it looks like any hopes Man Utd fans had of the France legend managing their club next season are over with the i newspaper journalist Peter Hall revealing that he has been told there is ‘no chance’ of Zidane ever managing the Red Devils.
Hall wrote on X: ‘Told there is no chance Zinedine Zidane would ever manage in England, never mind at Manchester United.’
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Bayern Munich have also been linked with Zidane but reliable France-based CBS Sports journalist Jonathan Johnson reckons there are two clubs more likely to appoint the Frenchman than the Bavarians or Man Utd.
Johnson wrote in his Caught Offside column: “As well as the Mbappe saga, one big story dominating headlines at the moment is the potential managerial merry-go-round we could see this summer due to the vacancies we’re going to see at Liverpool, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. A host of names have been linked with each of those jobs, and Zinedine Zidane is one that’s come up with the Bayern vacancy.
“Zidane has been out of the game for a while and although I think we will see him return soon, I don’t think we’ll see him take up a job before this summer’s European Championships because his priority is to one day become manager of the French national team. Should France under-perform in Germany this summer than perhaps there could be a case for Didier Deschamps leaving his post, but should they do well, and they are one of the favourites for the tournament, then we could perhaps see Zidane hold talks with other clubs.
“Specifically with the Bayern job, though, despite the club being somewhere where a number of French players have enjoyed a lot of success down the years, it’s quite a specific environment and one that tends to favour former players, especially at the moment when they’re going through quite a turbulent run.
“I could see Zidane putting out feelers for potential jobs available, and somewhere like Juventus, where he spent some time as a player, might appeal to him. Another one to keep an eye on would be Marseille – if there was to be a takeover at OM, they’re a club Zidane has an affinity with, even though ne never played for them. I think that could be an interesting project for him, especially with Mbappe leaving PSG, their Ligue 1 rivals might sense that there’s a real opportunity to challenge for honours.
“So I’m not too sure about the Bayern links, but Juventus and Marseille, should Zidane be on the club market, would be teams to keep tabs on, but it doesn’t change the fact that his priority at some point in his career is to lead the French national team.”
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