Zinedine Zidane Wants Coaching Return 'Soon' Amid Manchester United Rumours

Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has said he will return to coaching "soon" amid links to Manchester United. 

Zidane walked away from Real at the end of the previous campaign having enjoyed remarkable success with the club, winning three UEFA Champions League titles in succession at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Speaking to TVE (h/t Chris Burton of Goal), the former midfielder said he hopes to be back on the sidelines shortly. "Certainly I'll be coaching again soon because it's what I like doing and what I've done all my life," said Zidane.

As noted by Burton, following Manchester United's inconsistent start to the Premier League season, winning two and losing two of their first four games, Zidane was linked with potentially taking over from under-pressure manager Jose Mourinho.

According to John Richardson of the Sunday Mirror, Zidane has also considered possible targets if he was to get the job in the form of Bayern Munich pair James Rodriguez and Thiago Alcantara, as well as Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos and Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani.

Early in the season the Red Devils have shown major weaknesses under Mourinho. While they were improved in their 2-0 win at Burnley prior to the international break, in losses to Brighton & Hove Albion and Tottenham Hotspur the team were pulled apart with ease at the back.

Despite the early wobbles, Mourinho has made it clear he believes he will still be in a job for the time being. He told La Repubblica and La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Paul Hirst of The Times) that it would be too costly for the Red Devils to sack him; the Portuguese signed a contract earlier this year until 2020.

Even so, should results take another turn for the worse, with Zidane unattached to any club, Mourinho would surely come under massive pressure again:

Zidane's accomplishments as a manager are all the more remarkable when you consider the Real Madrid job was his first in senior coaching. In the past it's a position that's proved too big for some massive managers, but the Frenchman excelled in the spotlight.

Overall, his record of winning trophies with the Madrid giants was remarkable, as illustrated by Squawka Football:

While Zidane steered Los Blancos to the La Liga title in 2016-17, he will be remembered most vividly for his success in the Champions League.

Madrid are historically associated with the European Cup, and he was able to extend that tradition, as he guided the team to wins over Atletico Madrid, Juventus and Liverpool in successive finals. 

If any of European football's biggest names were to lose a manager in the coming months, Zidane would surely be on their agenda. Having earned a reputation as one of the greatest footballers of his generation, his success in the Santiago Bernabeu dugout makes him a managerial giant too.