Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane is tipped to replace Thomas Tuchel at Bayern Munich when the German leaves this summer.
The Bundesliga giants announced last month that Tuchel would step down as manager at the end of the season, opening the door to a whole host of candidates for the job. Zidane, meanwhile, has been unemployed since the end of his second term at the helm of Real in 2021. The Frenchman, who won three consecutive Champions Leagues during his first spell at Madrid, is tipped to replace Tuchel with Former Bayern player Mario Basler.
The 55-year-old technician told German media Ran: “ There aren’t many alternatives on the trainer market. I also think Xabi Alonso will stay at Leverkusen or go to another club, maybe Madrid or Liverpool. Perhaps he will stay at Leverkusen for another year before moving to Madrid when Carlo Ancelotti retires. The only person I could easily imagine would be Zinedine Zidane“.
Zidane at Bayern, it’s validated
However, Basler believes Bayern should not have been so eager to let Tuchel go, drawing parallels with the way Julian Nagelsmann was treated last year. He added : “I don’t understand Bayern’s personnel decision. Bayern made quick decisions again, as they did with Julian Nagelsmann back then. It was also very incomprehensible to me. If this scenario (Bayern wins the Champions League) comes to fruition, I would be curious to see if Bayern Munich will have the character to say: “We made a decision too early. We want to reverse this decision.” Maybe they’ll sit down with Tuchel again and see if they can’t continue for another year or two“.
As Basler indicates, Bayern have a chance of winning the Champions League – a competition Tuchel has already won once with Chelsea. However, Leverkusen’s exploits under Alonso have put them ten points behind in the Bundesliga, and the Spanish coach’s performances have been the subject of rumors. Bayern are one of those potential suitors, as they look set to compete with Liverpool this summer or Real Madrid the following summer.
In addition to Zidane and Alonso, Jose Mourinho and Hansi Flick, the former coach of Die Roten, are also being considered for the job at Bayern. Former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was mooted earlier this season, before Tuchel’s fate was revealed.
