French coach Zinedine Zidane has decided to break his silence to reveal the reasons behind his departure from Spanish club Real Madrid for the second time, justifying his decision by stating that he did not receive "the trust I need" to continue his duties at the royal club. The 1998 World Cup champion made the decision to part ways with Real last Thursday, just days after the club lost its title as champions of La Liga to bitter rivals Atletico Madrid.
After a glorious farewell as a player in 2006 and then his first departure as a coach in May 2018, just five days after winning the UEFA Champions League three times in a row in an unprecedented achievement, Zidane leaves Real Madrid this time with disappointing statistics and a season without any titles. Besides losing the league title, Real Madrid was eliminated from the Champions League this season in the semifinals by English club Chelsea.
In an open letter published on Monday by the Spanish newspaper "AS," he stated: "I have decided to leave now and I want to explain the reasons correctly. I am leaving not because I want to evade responsibility or because I am tired of coaching." He explained, "In May 2018, I left because after two and a half years, with many victories and many titles, I felt that the team needed a new approach to stay at the highest level."
He continued: "Currently, things are different. I am leaving because I feel that the club no longer trusts me to the extent that I need, nor is there the necessary support to build something for the medium or long term." Zidane remarked, "I understand football and know the demands of a team like Real Madrid. I know that when you do not win, you have to leave. But something very important has been forgotten. Everything I have built daily, and what I have brought with my relationships with the players, with the 150 people who work with the team and around it have been overlooked."
He emphasized, "I am a person who loves to win by nature, and I have been here to win titles, but more important than that are the people and their feelings and life itself, and I have a sense that these things have not been taken into consideration. There has been a failure to understand that these elements also maintain the dynamics of the great club. I have been somewhat criticized for that.”
