Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Zinedine Zidane, Football
Ryan Smart
Zinedine Zidane has dropped a major hint over his next role amid reports that he has reached an 'agreement' with a major European club.
Zidane has been out of management since leaving Real Madrid in 2021.
Marca reported last year that he would only return if he was offered roles with Real or France in the future.
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France are already on the lookout for a new national team manager, with Didier Deschamps announcing he will step down from the role after the 2026 World Cup.
On Monday, however, Turkish outlet Oksijen claimed that Zidane has 'reached a preliminary agreement' to take over as manager of Fenerbahce.
They add that the Frenchman is due to travel to Turkey 'after negotiations on salary and contract details are completed'.
Fenerbahce are searching for a manager to replace Jose Mourinho, who was sacked last month after the Turkish giants failed to qualify for this season's Champions League group stage.
Speaking in 2022, Zidane - who won the Champions League three times with Real - indicated that he would only join a club where he could speak the language, with 'certain conditions' - including being able to win - also needing to be met.
"When I was a player, I could choose almost every club," he told L'Equipe. "As a coach, there aren't 50 clubs I can go to. There are two or three possibilities.
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"If I go back to a club, it's to win. I say this in all modesty. That I can't go anywhere. For other reasons, too, I might not be able to go everywhere.
"The language, for example. Certain conditions make things more difficult. When people say to me: 'Do you want to go to Manchester?' I understand English but I don't fully master it.
"I know that there are coaches who go to clubs without speaking the language, but I work differently. To win, many elements come into play. It's a global context. Me, I know what I need to win."
Turkish is, naturally, the predominant language spoken in Turkey, though a small percentage of the country also speaks Arabic - a language Zidane is fluent in from his Algerian roots.