Zinedine Zidane on coaching Real Madrid: The dressing room has to like you

The former Los Blancos coach explains how fitness, trust and motivation once pulled Madrid back from the brink

Real Madrid’s problems are clear and immediate, with the squad looking short of energy and motivation at a critical point of the season.

Xabi Alonso has been succeeded by Álvaro Arbeloa, who debuted in the dugout in Los Blancos’ elimination at the hands of Albacete in the Copa del Rey earlier this week.

Speaking recently on Hamidou Msaidie’s YouTube channel, former Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane reflected on a moment during his tenure when the team’s season threatened to unravel and explained how blunt honesty and physical work changed everything.

“We reached a critical point,” Zidane recalled. “The team wasn’t in good physical shape and we just had to instil in them the idea that they needed to work as a team.

“We were able to work during the week because we only had LaLiga. I met with the four captains and told them what I wanted from them to see if they were committed. When they agreed to work, that was it, the joy came. We rediscovered their motivation. Work and joy. We made them run. Physical work was essential.”

The parallels with the current campaign are hard to ignore. Talent is not the issue. Intensity is. Zidane’s account underlines how quickly standards can slip at Madrid and how decisively they must be addressed.

Jude Bellingham denies any dressing room rift contributing to the departure of Xabi Alonso from Real Madrid.

“What a load of sh*t. Truly feel sorry for the people that hang onto the every word of these clowns and their ‘sources’.

“Do not believe everything you read.” pic.twitter.com/APzDb5ZeFm

— BBSportNews (@BBSportNews24) January 14, 2026

Why Zidane believed belief mattered more than systems

For Zidane, the solution was not rooted in tactics or sweeping changes, but in convincing players that the staff were fully invested in them. Without that bond, he believes no idea can truly take hold.

“At Real Madrid, we were there for the players,” he added. “For me, that’s what makes the team strong, you’re there for the player.

“If you don’t understand that, you can’t last in this profession. We’re there to support them; you have to show that you’re there for them. For the dressing room to accept what you want to implement, they have to like you. If the players don’t agree with everything they’re given, the training sessions, all that… there will always be something missing. With us, I think they enjoyed it a lot on all levels.”

That connection, he explained, translated into demanding days and renewed ambition. The work was relentless, but it came with purpose.

“At first, we would arrive at 9 in the morning and leave at 11 at night,” Zidane noted. “I knew what I was getting myself into. We had the best team in the world. I looked at the players and knew that if we worked hard, we could achieve great things, and that’s what happened. We didn’t want every training session to be the same.”