Zidane doesn’t want Eriksen or van de Beek

Real Madrid have failed in their pursuit of Manchester United’s Paul Pogba for the time being, and the Premier League club have now reportedly closed the door on the Frenchman leaving Old Trafford this month.

According to AS, Real president Florentino Perez had been working on a “plan B” which included Christian Eriksen of Tottenham Hotspur and Donny van de Beek of Ajax, but it appears head coach Zinedine Zidane simply isn’t interested in any alternative options. If he can’t have Pogba, he’ll rather work with the players already at his disposal – that was the message he sent to those above him. That, apparently, may mean that Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez could get another chance.

This is not the only point of disagreement between Zidane and Perez, but Zidane had asked for full control of the team as one of the conditions for his comeback following the sacking of Santiago Solari. Perez, on the other hand, isn’t happy about the way new signings, which cost the club over €300 million, were used during the pre-season, though about Zidane wanting to make only one of them – Eden Hazard – a regular starter.