Zidane 2.0

"It has been difficult from the outside looking in. I am looking forward to working with the players again, to competing again…I want to put Real Madrid back where it belongs.”

And here we are: just 284 days after he walked away, 284 days during which two managers were sacked as Real Madrid’s season sank into oblivion, Zinedine Zidane made a triumphant return back to the Santiago Bernabéu. Few were expecting the Frenchman’s return with the spectre of José Mourinho looming over Los Blancos, but the negativity that accompanied the rumours of the Portuguese’s impending return have been fully offset by Zidane’s effervescent charm.

A season that once looked lost is now infused with renewed hope: Real Madrid might not win anything, but at least they are back to being led by their favourite son. A three-time Champion’s League winner who scripted the greatest era in Madrid's modern era, it was obvious that Zidane would be given a hero’s welcome.

But questions still abound as to Zidane 2.0. How will the Frenchman rebuild this beleaguered side? Who will be shipped out, and who will be brought in? Does Zidane even have the expertise necessary to embark on such a daring project?