Zidane pledges to restore Madrid’s attacking prowess

The Spaniard was understood to be ready to allow Jese to leave on loan in the January transfer window after he fell out of favour in the capital.

“It’s a fact that six weeks ago they (Madrid) approached him and asked him ‘would you take over?'” Hunter told the BBC.

Zidane also spoke about his apprenticeship working for the likes of Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti at Real and how he aims to take parts of their management and mesh it with his own ideals in his first high-profile coaching job.

“Good football has always been important at this place, and I am going to continue that”.

His appointment was hailed by former Real teammate David Beckham, who took to Instagram to express his delight at the move.

He has spent a season and a half in charge of Madrid s feeder team Castilla, which failed to secure promotion from Spanish football s third tier last season.

Zidane’s first game as coach will be on Saturday against Deportivo La Coruna in the Spanish league.

It is no secret that Real club president Florentino Perez desires to emulate Pep Guardiola’s success at Barcelona, and given Zidane and the Catalan’s similar rise from player to youth coach to head coach, comparisons between the two have already been drawn.

When Real were hammered 4-0 at home by arch rivals Barca in La Liga at the end of November it was the beginning of the end and Benitez has been roundly whistled at the Bernabeu in recent months, when fans have also called for Perez to step down.

Zidane is not known for his communication skills, and his playing career ended with an infamous headbutt in the 2006 World Cup final.

He is enjoying his best ever season at Arsenal and will not be regretting leaving Real, but he clearly will be following how they get on, with more interest than ever. He called Zidane “the best person for the job“. “A man that has been the best at a game we all love, taking over of a club that myself and many more people love”.

The 10-time European champions opted to replace Benitez with Zidane, but he feels no bitterness towards his successor, and wishes him “good luck”. Barcelona has dominated both competitions, with four Champions League trophies in the last decade and five Liga crowns to Madrid’s one in the last seven seasons.