Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has said that the most important thing for any coach to succeed at the club is focusing on helping the players.
Zidane noted that having a good connection with the players is really important, and if that connection is not there, no coach can last very long.
On Hamidou Msaidie’s YouTube channel, Zidane explained that the main reason Xabi Alonso left the club was because he was not able to manage the team’s dressing room properly.
He said the manager was not winning the players over and was trying to fight a battle he could not win at Real Madrid.
He said, via GOAL, “At Real Madrid, we were at the players’ disposal.
For me, that’s what makes something strong—you’re there for the player. If you still don’t get it, you won’t be able to stay in this job.
“We’re here to help them; you need to let them know you’re here for them. For the dressing room to support what you want to do, they need to like us. If the players don’t agree with everything you set up, like the training and all of that…, omething will always be missing.
“With us, they really enjoyed themselves on all levels, I think. We gave the players a lot of confidence. When they’ve had gone through a tough time and needed to get their confidence and fitness back, we set up a system so they could retrieve all of that again.
“When a player is really motivated, enjoys training, and is excited to play in matches, you’ll definitely win all three Champions Leagues.”
Zinedine Zidane coached 263 games for Real Madrid during his two separate stays at the club.
He won the UEFA Champions League three times and the league title twice.