Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane insists he is not phased by speculation over his future ahead of the first Clasico of the season.
Real suffered a 1-0 loss to Cadiz in their last La Liga outing and four days later suffered a 3-2 loss to second-string Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League.
Real suffered two disappointing defeats in four days / Socrates Images/Getty Images
Such is the volatile nature of the real job, it has led to speculation that Zidane – who has led the club to three Champions League triumphs and two La Liga titles – should his team lose against rivals Barcelona. They may be in the line of fire. Saturday.
Although the Real boss admitted he was in a bit of a quandary, he insisted he was used to being under this kind of pressure at the club.
“That’s what they say. [that my job is under threat] – I will not deny it,” said Zidane [via Marca]. “What changes? Same last year, same as the first spell… All I have to do is my job, the rest is irrelevant.”
Real found themselves 3-0 down at half-time during their midweek Champions League clash with Shakhtar – who were missing 13 first-team players due to the coronavirus.
Zidane is used to being under pressure at Real / Quality Sport Images / Getty Images.
However, Zidane insists the result and performance are in the past, and sees Saturday’s Clasico as the perfect chance to right the wrongs of Wednesday evening.
“There are ups and downs in football and you have to accept that,” the Frenchman added. “We now want to focus on a different game tomorrow. And forget what happened the other day. We have a chance to change things and to do so is a good and special match.
“There can be bad moments, but at the end of the day the good thing about football is that you can turn things around and that’s what we’re trying to do, put in a good performance and think positive.”