LiverpoolOdds Slashed on Zinedine Zidane Replacing Arne Slot at Liverpool

Zidane has been out of work since leaving Real Madrid for a second time in 2021.

 

 

 

 

 

Zinedine Zidane has become one of the bookmakers’ favourites to take over at Liverpool if the Reds decide to part company with Arne Slot.

 

 

 

Liverpool have lost five of their last six matches in all competitions – their worst run since Slot took over as manager last summer.

 

 

 

They were defeated 3-2 at Brentford on Saturday, a result which leaves them in seventh place in the Premier League table.

 

 

 

There does not appear to be any panic at Anfield yet, given that Liverpool won last season’s Premier League title and had won all of their five league matches before their current winless streak.

 

 

 

Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, have only sacked three managers – Roy Hodgson, Kenny Dalglish and Brendan Rodgers – since taking majority control of the club all the way back in 2010.

 

 

 

Regardless, the Reds’ poor run has inevitably brought some pressure on Slot from sections of Liverpool supporters.

 

 

 

Now, Betfair have updated their odds on the next Liverpool manager – with some surprising movements.

 

 

 

Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner has been named as the favourite, at 3/1, to take over from Slot, while Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola is at 4/1.

 

 

 

Zidane, meanwhile, is third-favourite at 9/2, while Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann has odds of 7/1.

 

 

 

A surprise return to Anfield for Jurgen Klopp, who is now global head of football for Red Bull, is priced at 9/1.

 

 

 

What has Zidane said about Liverpool?

 

 

 

Zidane has spoken positively about Liverpool in the past, naming Anfield as the best away stadium in an interview with Real Madrid’s official YouTube channel.

 

 

 

Ahead of the 2021 Champions League quarter-final, which saw Zidane’s Real side defeat Liverpool over two legs, the Frenchman praised the work that Klopp had done in transforming the Reds into a ‘complete team’.

 

 

 

“They’re a complete team,” he told reporters. “Some people will mention the three forwards [Mo Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino], and it’s true that they are really good.

 

 

 

“But I think they’re a strong, solid unit. I’d rather focus on the team. After that, yes, the three forwards are really efficient. We’ll have to be alert.”

 

 

 

Much like when he has been strongly linked with taking over at Manchester United, however, there would be stumbling blocks for Zidane if he was asked to manage Liverpool.

 

 

 

The 1998 Ballon d’Or winner told L’Equipe in 2022 that he is not fully proficient in speaking English – though he understands the language – and that it would hinder him if he moved to English football.

 

 

 

Zidane has repeatedly played down reports that he could manage an English club (Image: Canal+ Sport Afrique)

 

 

 

“When people say to me, ‘Do you want to go to Manchester?’”, he said. “I understand English, but I don’t fully master it. I know that there are coaches who go to clubs without speaking the language, but I work differently.”

 

 

 

Zidane’s only managerial roles in football have been with Real Madrid, having coached their Castilla side between 2014 and 2016 and then the senior side on two separate occasions.

 

 

 

He spent five years at the Bernabeu as a player and learned to speak fluent Spanish.

 

 

 

Despite leaving Real in 2021 and not taking a job since, he has also been heavily linked with replacing Didier Deschamps as manager of France after the 2026 World Cup next summer.