Thread by @totalcristiano

Zinedine Zidane, the manager. [THREAD]

First thing to note. Zidane is a winner, he sets his team to win. He’s the second most successful manager in Real Madrid’s history judging by his trophy tally, but the most successful in terms of trophies per games played (21 games per trophy won).

In 2016, Zidane took over Benitez’s Real Madrid, who were out of the Copa del Rey and 3rd in the La Liga table (12 points behind). He managed to close that gap down to 1 point, by winning the final 12 La Liga games of the season — something that’s never been done before.

In that same stretch, he managed to beat Barcelona who were on a 39 game unbeaten streak with 10 men with a late Cristiano Ronaldo winner. This was Real Madrid’s first win at Camp Nou in La Liga since the historical league winning game in 2012.

In that season, he led Real Madrid to the Champions League title in his first 26 games as a manager. Comfortably beating Roma in the R16, a memorable comeback vs Wolfsburg in the QF, edging past Manchester City and beating Atletico in the UCL final.

The following season, 2016/17. Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid went to another level, dominating the best of teams. They became the first team to win back to back Champions League titles in the modern era, whilst also winning La Liga title.

‘This is the final!’ A phrase loved by every Madridista, it seemed that everytime Zidane said it, the game was won. He instilled not only a tactical side to his team, but also the belief, the trust and the confidence in the manager.

The 2016/17 season saw Real Madrid win 5 trophies, described as the greatest modern season in Real Madrid’s history by Florentino Perez.

2017/18, the famous and historical 3-peat. Real Madrid faced: PSG, followed by Juventus, followed by Bayern and met Liverpool in the final. Important to note, not in a single campaign during the 3-peat were Real Madrid classed as an outright ‘favourite’, crazy, I know.

During the 2015/16 season, Zinedine Zidane used a 433 system: Cristiano - Benzema - Bale, but with Bale’s reoccurring injuries, he shifted to a 442 diamond, especially in the bigger games. Isco became key, it allowed Real Madrid to create midfield overloads: 4v3 for control.

The system focused on ball retention, to allow Real Madrid to control the tempo of the game. This allowed the team to maximise productivity and attacking versatility. Ronaldo and Benzema drew the CB’s narrow, which allowed the wingback’s to push higher to create 1v1 scenarios.

The team was flexible. During the build-up: 2-3-3-2, with Kroos, at times, dropping to get more time and space on the ball. This emphasised on Zidane’s possession - counter attacking style.

During the defensive shape, Real Madrid turned into a 442 shape. Casemiro in front of the CB’s which prevented counter attacks when the ball was lost.

The elite teams began figuring out that Casemiro was the press trigger. But Zidane adapted, he asked Toni Kroos to drop deeper in order to form a pivot to bypass the first press. This worked brilliantly, it allowed Marcelo and Carvajal more freedom to push higher.

With Marcelo and Carvajal being able to push high, they became wing-back’s and it allowed them to receive the ball in 1v1 situations. Ronaldo moved inside towards the left half-space. The Ronaldo-Marcelo connection was crucial for results.

The tactical flexibility was key. Benzema helped the wing-back’s to create overloads - which also created space if Kroos or Modric needed to switch the ball. Due to these overloads, whenever the ball was lost, the team had a counter pressing structure with crucial discipline.

In Zidane’s first spell, Real Madrid were known for the attacking style of play. Averaging just under 3 goals per game. However, defensive errors cost the team domestically. *THIS* changed in his 2nd spell.

After the historical 3-peat, Zinedine Zidane decided to leave his role as Real Madrid’s coach to the suprise of many, including Florentino Perez. He wanted more control, he was and never will be a ‘yes man’. He was also reportedly against Ronaldo’s sale and the lack of incomings.

Zidane’s first stint in summary:

Zinedine Zidane’s second stint: this is where Zidane showed why he’s one of the best managers in the world. He broke many myths ‘he was carried by the elite players’ even though the coaches previous to him struggled to dominate to his level. He showed his tactical intelligence.

Zinedine Zidane’s assistant, Bettoni recently gave an interview to explain the changes they had to make during the second stint in order to replace the missing 40 goals from Cristiano Ronaldo. Again, shows Zidane’s ability to change and adapt.

Zidane wanted more energy and a more solid defensive structure. It was exactly what we saw, Real Madrid achieved their 2nd best ever defensive record during the 2019/20 season. The opposition found it much harder to bypass Real Madrid.

Zidane was not scared of making changes when needed, he was one step ahead of the others. Zidane made Mendy a starter ahead of Marcelo, due to his ability in defensive transitions. It was no coincidence that Real Madrid were unbeaten in Mendy’s first 33 La Liga starts.

In need of more solidity in midfield, Zidane turned to Federico Valverde, who has provided the energy and dynamism that was lacking last season. Zidane lacked goalscorers, so he looked for more defensive solidarity. Even more so after Eden Hazard’s injuries became about.

Real Madrid’s pressing in the final 3rd decreased from 38.2 pressures/90 during 2017/18 to 30.3 pressures/90 in 2019/20 in order to decrease Benzema’s workload and to decrease the amount of counter attacks the team faced - keeping a solid structure.

Modric/Valverde were tasked with pressing depending on the opposition. Valverde’s energy was key in order to create overloads on the right. This allowed Kroos to drop in to create a pivot with Casemiro to provide cover for counter attacks.

The introduction of Federico Valverde was KEY. In his 21 starts in La Liga that season, Real Madrid were unbeaten. He was often tasked with pressing the opposition’s creative midfielder. He was able to fill in the gaps when Carvajal went forward, helping defensively.

With changes to the personnel and to the system, Zidane led Real Madrid to the 2019/20 La Liga title, even after facing numerous consistent injuries to important players. He put an end to many myths, proving that he’s an elite tactician.

The 2020/21 season, the structure and system mirrored to the success from the 2019/20 season. Real Madrid suffered from a record of 63 different injuries throughout that 2020/21 season. A tough task for any manager to deal with.

Real Madrid reached the Champions League semi-final and just lost out on La Liga title on the last day. Even with the pressure from the media who called for his sacking due to the exit in Copa del Rey. But once again, he produced results and turned the media into his corner.

During the 2020/21 season, we once again saw Zidane’s flexibility. He matched Atalanta’s 3 at the back system excellently to allow Real Madrid to control the game with Kroos being able to bypass Atalanta’s first wave of pressure.

It was the home leg vs Liverpool in the UCL semi final which saw Zidane get the well deserved credit. Without Hazard, Carvajal, Ramos and Varane — Real Madrid were dominant, especially in the first half. The instructions given to Toni Kroos was where the game was won.

After the 2020/21 season, Zidane decided to leave his role as Real Madrid’s manager due to several reasons. Especially due to the media and the lack of control & confidence he felt he was given in making internal decisions.

The following tweets will highlight the records and the impress stats which support the view of Zinedine Zidane being ELITE.

Zidane’s record at Camp Nou as a manager:

2016: Barca 1-2 Real Madrid.
2016: Barca 1-1 Real Madrid.
2017: Barca 1-3 Real Madrid.
2018: Barca 2-2 Real Madrid.
2019: Barca 0-0 Real Madrid.
2020: Barca 1-3 Real Madrid.

Zidane’s record vs Simeone’s Atletico in La Liga:

• Real 0-1 Atleti.
• Atleti 0-3 Real.
• Real 1-1 Atleti.
• Atleti 0-0 Real.
• Real 1-1 Atleti.
• Atleti 0-0 Real.
• Real 1-0 Atleti.
• Real 2-0 Atleti.
• Atleti 1-1 Real.

And of course the 2x UCL wins.

Historical records:

• The most trophies won after 100 games in Spanish football: 7.
• The least defeats after 100 games in Spanish football: 7.
• The joint longest winning streak in La Liga history: 16.
• The longest away winning streak in La Liga history: 13.

🎙| Florentino Perez: “Zidane is the best manager in Real Madrid’s history.”

The END. Thank you for reading.

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