How Man Utd used Zidane to keep Ronaldo happy

James Shearman

• Updated: 13 Apr 2022 21:20 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United linked Zinedine Zidane with their vacant managerial position to appease star striker Cristiano Ronaldo.

Former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked in November, with Zidane one of the few potential replacements.

However, according to reports, United were never serious about hiring the out-of-work Frenchman, even though he seemed the obvious choice.

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Zidane won 11 trophies in charge of Real Madrid, including three Champions League titles in a row.

And, many of which were with Ronaldo - who was enthused by the idea of reuniting with his former coach.

''[Zidane] helped me a lot,'' said Ronaldo in August 2019. ''I already had a lot of respect for him but working with him made me admire him more.

''That's because of what he's like as a person, how he talks, how he led the team and how he treated me.''

One man that Ronaldo did not approve of was former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte, who is now doing well at Tottenham, according to the Manchester Evening News.

However, in this instance, both Ronaldo and the club's hierarchy were on the same page, as well as Red Devils legend Gary Neville.

In the end, neither Zidane, nor Conte were appointed as ex-RB Leipzig head coach Ralf Rangnick was given the role on an interim basis.

Man Utd's Rangnick replacement

Manchester United are set to replace Rangnick with Ajax head coach Erik ten Hag at the end of the season.

Ten Hag, responsible for the Dutch club's Champions League run in 2019, is thought to be ahead of Paris Saint-Germain's Mauricio Pochettino in the running.

He will be handed the responsibility of determining United's style of play and transfer dealings going forward.