Zidane names first order of business ahead of 2019-20 season

April 2, 2019 By Oscar Rojas

Topics: La Liga, Real Madrid, Zinedine Zidane, Thibaut Courtois, Keylor Navas, Luca Zidane

The French boss wants his footballers to have certainty about their role with the club, even if that means that he has to part ways with some of his players.

Before Real Madrid signs any players, they need to sort things out inside their own locker room.

Speaking in the pre-match press conference for the game against Valencia, Zinedine Zidane spoke about possible transfers in and out of the club, specifically talking about what could happen under the sticks.

The debate involving Keylor Navas and Thibaut Courtois gave both Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari a hard-time during the season, and judging by Zidane's words, he wants such a situation to end.

"We have three excellent goalies, we will end the season with them and we will decide what we will do about it next season. But let me tell you one thing: there will be no debate about our No.1 goalkeeper. We will not change goalkeepers week after week, it will be pretty clear for everyone since day one," Zidane said.

Zidane seems to think the same way about other positions in the team, but he asked the media to be respectful about the future of all players.

"You can't talk about an overhaul. I believe that the term is disrespectful. Sure, we will have to make some changes, but this is not the time to talk about them,"Zizou added.

The French boss took time to dismiss claims about Raphael Varane's supposed desire to leave the club.

"I don't want to imagine this team without Varane. He's still young, he's been here for many years and he's doing a fine job. There are a lot of things that make headlines, but they did not come from within the club. He's never told me that he wants to leave, and I give more relevance to what he tells me. Evidently, I want to keep him around,"Zidane added.

Asked about the spots in the lineup where he wants to add players, Zidane concluded the presser by stating "you will find out soon enough."

Real Madrid will face Valencia with an almost full squad, with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric returning to the team. Marcos Llorente and Vinicius will not be around due to their respective injuries.