Paris Saint-Germain are said to have visited with Zinedine Zidane in the hopes of appointing him as their new coach. The two sides are alleged to have met to discuss the possibility at the Royal Monceau hotel, one of Paris’ most opulent.
According to Le Parisien, PSG’s sporting director Leonardo and Jean-Claude Blanc, the club’s general manager and a close friend of Zidane, were present at the meeting. The suggestion is that Zidane, unwilling to interrupt his sabbatical, will take over at the Parc des Princes next summer.
Mauricio Pochettino and Manchester United
All of this casts doubt on current PSG manager Mauricio Pochettino’s future. The Argentinian is already on precarious footing following his team’s terrible Champions League performances this season – the latest of which came against Manchester City on Wednesday night – and suspicions abound that he may leave Paris for Manchester United.
When asked if he will be on the bench for the Champions League knockouts after the defeat to City, the ex-Spurs boss was evasive.
“The players know very well our situation,” said Pochettino.
“I think we are living in a business in which rumors are there, sometimes negative, sometimes positive, sometimes positive, sometimes negative.
“That is what we say about the rumors.”
With Didier Deschamps expected to leave after the World Cup in Qatar next year, Zidane appeared to be waiting to take over as France’s coach. However, recent events indicate that he has changed his mind.
Zidane is a great choice for PSG
Zidane’s calm demeanor, combined with his own experience as a Galactico, means he knows how to get the best out of a high-paid, high-strung squad, as he demonstrated during his two stints at Real Madrid. At Real Madrid, he also demonstrated that he can handle the most severe scrutiny.
Although he may not be the tactical powerhouse of some of his peers, he won three Champions League titles with Real Madrid, and with the group of players he would inherit, he would surely go close to winning Europe’s premier trophy – one that PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi wants more than any other.
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