Former Real Madrid winger Steve McManaman says he never envisaged Zinedine Zidane becoming a manager one day when they played together for Los Blancos.
The pair shared a the Real Madrid dressing room for two years and during that time McManaman said he saw other players such as Fernando Hierro as having what it takes to step up and become a boss one day.
Since retiring, Zidane has had a number of roles at Los Blancos. He was assistant to Carlo Ancelotti for a year before becoming the manager of the Real Madrid Castilla side. He stepped up to the full time job in January when Rafa Benitez was fired just seven months into his contract.
Speaking to the Daily Express, the 43-year-old said: “I didn’t think in the dressing room ‘he’d be a manager’. When he arrived he didn’t speak Spanish and he was very quiet. He was an incredible footballer but he normally spoke French and only French.”
And he continued: “You wouldn’t think he would be Madrid manager because he wasn’t at all vocal in the dressing room. You’d think someone like Fernando Hierro could be a manager because he was a leader and he was Spanish. In some ways Hierro was our manager.
“Vicente del Bosque of course was actually our manager but he was quite quiet. Hierro did the team-talks and f-ed and blinded and shouted ‘come on’. Whereas Zizou was quiet, reserved and very professional. He came, trained and went home.”
Comment: Dats wat it takes to be successful most of d times, they say an empty vessel makes much sound, do more and talkless its d model