Zinedine Zidane shocked the football world back in May when he revealed that he was leaving Real Madrid, shortly after lifting his third Champions League trophy as Los Blancos boss.
A whole host of managers were then linked with the vacancy at the Spanish giants, including Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp, and it’s now been confirmed by Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo that the club wanted the German as Zidane’s replacement.
In the end, Real Madrid opted for Spain head coach Julen Lopetegui, while Klopp stayed at Liverpool and has since gone on to enjoy an unbeaten start to the new Premier League season with the Reds third in the table after eight games.
But rumours regarding Klopp-to-Real Madrid could soon be set to resurface with Lopetegui’s job reportedly on the line.
It’s fair to say that the Spaniard has endured a tough start to life at the Bernabeu with his underperforming troops failing to win any of their last four league and cup matches, a torrid run which includes three defeats and zero goals scored.
The late 1-0 loss on Saturday was their first to Alaves since 1931, while it extended the club’s shocking goal drought to six hours and 49 minutes – their longest run without scoring in a whopping 33 years.
In turn, Lopetegui has come under an avalanche of pressure, leading to a flurry of reports that he’s on the verge of losing his job after only 11 games in the job.
Should the Madrid hierarchy wield that dreaded axe they could well be tempted to try their luck once again and lure Klopp over to the Bernabeu.
But, it goes without saying that any attempt would be greeted by a firm NO by Liverpool chiefs.
At the time of writing Klopp is priced at 33/1 to make the shock switch from Anfield to the Bernabeu, although in truth it’s difficult to envision an appointment, although who knows what could happen next summer.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino remains the favourite in the Next Real Madrid Manager Market, followed by ex-Chelsea boss Antonio Conte, Max Allegri and Joachim Low, while Neil Warnock is a 500/1 shot…