The manager appears to be feeling the strain and it will be hard for him to continue if his team go out of the Champions League
“Yeah, yeah, for sure,” Zinedine Zidane said and then a familiar, knowing smile returned to his face after a few weeks in which it hadn’t been seen. Real Madrid’s coach had just been asked if this was the most difficult moment in his career. “For sure,” he continued, “but it’s like always: there have been bad moments, criticism, and today’s the same. Maybe more than before, but no problem: I’m not thinking about that. I feel like the players are going to do it on the pitch. Tomorrow is an opportunity to show that we’re a good team.”
This week they need to. Zidane needs them to, as well. And they have rarely done so this season. After picking up one point from nine domestically and losing again in Europe, the next seven days – in which Madrid face Sevilla, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Atlético Madrid – will go some way towards shaping their season and deciding their manager’s future. Even he is not untouchable. “I never felt I was, never,” Zidane said. “Not as a player, a coach, or person. We’re all here for a reason; I’m here for a reason [to win], and will be until the last day.”
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