Manchester United are reportedly anticipating the departure of Jose Mourinho as manager by putting Zinedine Zidane at the top of their list of potential replacements for him.
The Portuguese tactician has cut a frustrated figure in pre-season so far, with one or two of his comments in press conferences certainly raising a few eyebrows among fans and pundits.
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It seems Mourinho’s behaviour has not gone down too well inside the club either, with players and staff left ‘shocked’ by his antics, leading to Zidane being considered amid growing fears of losing their current boss, according to the Sun.
Zidane was a huge success at Real Madrid before stepping down at the end of last season, and many fans at Old Trafford would likely be pleased with such a change.
Mourinho has certainly not won everyone over in his time in charge of United so far, having spent a lot of money on big-name players like Paul Pogba, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez, only to struggle to get the team playing an exciting brand of football or challenging for the biggest prizes.
Zidane, meanwhile, won three Champions League titles in as many years as Madrid manager and seems like the kind of tactician who might be able to inspire more from players like Pogba and Sanchez.
It remains to be seen when this change could happen, but the Sun suggest there is the growing feeling at United that this will be Mourinho’s final season.