Zinedine Zidane first took over first team managerial duties at Real Madrid in January 2016. He neither bought nor sold any players in his first transfer window, but deals were to be done the following summer. Only one player was signed, but four were sold, and it is with those four that we will soon begin our seven.
Zidane’s first stint in charge of his former club spanned less than two-and-a-half years from start to finish, but he did manage to win three Champions League titles, one La Liga title, two Club World Cups, two UEFA Super Cups and one Spanish Super Cup, before resigning and claiming that there was a need for change at the club.
That change arrived in the form of former national team coach Julien Lopetegui, but he didn’t last long, before Santiago Solari piled on the misery. On March 11th, ten months on from his resignation, Zidane returned as Real Madrid manager.
Here are Zidane’s first 7 Real Madrid sales: Where are they now?
7. Jese Rodriguez – PSG
There were one or two people who were surprised when Zinedine Zidane’s first transfer business as Real Madrid manager was selling Jese Rodriguez, given that the Spaniard had come through the youth ranks at Real and had made 38 appearances the previous season. PSG were the suitors, €25 million was the fee, and an anti-Barca clause was added so Jese would never end up playing for Real’s bitter rivals. Three years on, the chances of Barcelona wanting to sign Jese are similar to my chances of winning the Champions League. The 26-year-old has made just nine league appearances for the Parisians, with loan moves to Las Palmas, Stoke City and Real Betis ranging from bad to awful. He’s still contracted to the French champions, but it seems unlikely he’ll be able to break into the side next season.
6. Denis Cheryshev – Valencia
Denis Cheryshev of FC Valencia controls the ball during the pre-season friendly match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and FC Valencia at BayArena on August 4, 2019 in Leverkusen, Germany.
The joint second highest scorer at the 2018 World Cup, tied with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe, Denis Cheryshev was born in Russia – or the Soviet Union as it was at the time – but was raised in Spain, where his father played professional football. Like Jese, he came through the youth ranks at Real but was sold by Zidane during the Frenchman’s first summer in charge. Villarreal came calling, and a fee somewhere in the region of £8 million was agreed. Following three years contracted to the club, the last of which was spent on-loan at Valencia, Cheryshev joined Valencia on a permanent deal for a supposed €6 million this summer.
5. Omar Mascarell – Schalke
Born in Tenerife, Omar Mascarell joined the Real Madrid academy at the age of 17. He registered just one senior appearance for Los Blancos, coming on as a substitute for Mesut Ozil in a La Liga game back in 2013. A hard working and intelligent deep-lying playmaker, Mascarell joined Eintracht Frankfurt for a reported €1 million in Zidane’s first summer in charge, although Real did insert a buy-back clause. Following two years with Frankfurt, Mascarell joined Bundesliga rivals Schalke last summer, where he played 19 games last season, and Real apparently retain their buy-back option should they ever wish to exercise it.
4. Alvaro Medran – Valencia
Alvaro Medran of Rayo Vallecano looks on during the La Liga match between RC Celta de Vigo and Rayo Vallecano de Madrid at Abanca Balaidos Stadium on May 18, 2019 in Vigo, Spain.
The second current Valencia player in this seven, Alvaro Medran made five appearances for Real Madrid during the 2014-15 season, but spent the 2015-16 campaign on-loan at Getafe. Zizou sold the young midfielder in the summer of 2016 for a reported €1.5 million to Valencia, where the Spaniard played 20 games in his debut campaign. He spent the following season on-loan at Alaves, and last season on-loan at Rayo Vallecano, but it looks possible that he could be back in the first team fold at Valencia next season.
3. Mariano – Real Madrid
Still at Real Madrid at the time of this recording, striker Mariano has been linked with a whole host of clubs this summer. A prolific scorer for Real Madrid Castilla, Mariano scored 5 goals in 14 games in his final season at the Bernabeu. Zidane sold him to Lyon for €8 million in the summer of 2017, but after 21 goals in 45 games in his first season in France, Real brought him back last summer for €23 million. He had a quiet campaign though, in what was a turgid season by Real’s standards, and he is currently being linked with the likes of Roma and Monaco.
2. Alvaro Morata – Atletico Madrid
Alvaro Morata of Chelsea celebrates after scoring his team’s third goal during the Premier League match between Southampton FC and Chelsea FC at St Mary’s Stadium on October 7, 2018 in…
Six of the seven players in this video came through the youth ranks at Real Madrid, and Alvaro Morata is the last of those six. The Madrid-native joined the Real academy at the age of 15, and he was an absolute sensation for Real Madrid Castilla and Spain’s youth teams from under-16 to under-21 level. Real first sold Morata to Juventus in 2014, but two seasons later he became Zinedine Zidane’s first signing as Real Madrid boss. He bagged 20 goals in 43 games in his only season back at the Bernabeu, before Los Blancos accepted a £60 million bid from Chelsea. That made Morata the Blues record signing at the time, but he was a very different kind of footballer to the man he replaced – Diego Costa – and Morata is now playing for Real’s crosstown rivals Atletico on-loan from the Premier League club.
1. Danilo – Juventus
The only non-Real academy graduate in this seven, Brazilian international Danilo’s footballing education came with Atletico Mineiro. He joined Real Madrid in 2015 off the back of three impressive seasons at Porto, commanding a €31.5 million fee to lure him away from the Portuguese giants. Following 56 appearances in two seasons in the Spanish capital, Danilo became one of three very expensive full-backs to join Manchester City in the summer of 2017, setting the club back a reported £26.5 million. Having made 38 appearances in his debut campaign, the Brazilian made just 18 appearances under Pep Guardiola last season, but joined Juventus this summer as Joao Cancelo headed in the opposite direction.
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