Real Madrid is unstoppable in the UEFA Champions League. Winning one Champions League is tough, winning two is even harder. What if three in a row? Relax buddy! Countless clubs have witnessed the most iconic anthem in the history of organized football. Countless teams have given everything to reach euphoria. By the time it’s all over, countless teams have failed to even come close....Read The Full Story Here ▶
But there is one team that absolutely cannot relate to what I just said. A team that wins this competition so often that it’s a wonder they haven’t named the trophy after them yet. Real Madrid is so dominant in Europe that it really makes you wonder how they keep it up. Regardless of personnel, this team manages to regularly exceed our expectations.
With 14 wins in total, Los Blancos have won double the number of trophies compared to the team with the second most, Milan with seven. And you can bet they’ll be adding to that tally in the future. As of 2022, this team has won five titles in a nine-year period, which is remarkable.
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However, three titles between 2016 and 2018 stand out: a Zidane masterclass that cemented his legacy as untouchable both on and off the pitch, a CR7 demolition that established him as the greatest Champions League player ever, and a team effort that is hard to imagine will be replicated anytime soon.
Rebuilding Under Carlo Ancelotti (2014-2015)
“We must start again from zero,” Carlo Ancelotti said after a poor start to the 2014-15 season. The sales of Angel Di Maria and Xabi Alonso, two key figures, were identified as major contributors to this sentiment.
After over a decade of failing to advance past the semifinals, Real Madrid finally managed to win their 10th Champions League in 2014. La Decima was a monumental occasion, truly one for the ages. Naturally, it was expected that this win would herald a period of dominance. However, it did not, at least not immediately, which, even as I write this, sounds absurd.
Yes, Madrid had a poor start, but they finished the season with 92 points in the league, just two behind first-place Barça. They were narrowly eliminated from the UCL in the semifinals, and Cristiano Ronaldo had his best scoring season ever with 61 goals in all competitions. Moreover between September 13, 2014 — and December 4, 2015, they played 22 games and won every single one.
Nevertheless, what you have to understand about a team like Real Madrid is that they have impossibly high standards. They are impatient and, frankly, often fickle. Cristiano Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Alfredo Di Stefano – they’ve all been booed by supporters who expect nothing less than perfection.
Of course, Barcelona winning the treble that year didn’t help matters. To many, this season was deemed a complete failure. Further evidence of this: Carlo Ancelotti was immediately sacked.
Rafa Benitez, his successor, was not exactly the replacement Madrid had hoped for. While he topped his UCL group and boasted an 11-4-3 record, his Madrid team was third in the league by the time his tenure ended. Additionally, he played Denis Cheryshev in the Copa del Rey, despite him being ineligible due to card accumulation, resulting in Madrid’s disqualification.
Change was necessary. Fortunately for Madrid, they didn’t have to look far.
The Rise of Zinedine Zidane, 2010-2016
The emergence of Zizou. As a player, Zinedine Zidane was a legend, as we all know. To this day, many regard him not only as the greatest European player ever but also as a contender for the GOAT. With Real Madrid, the title of legend is fitting. “Spending 20 years in Madrid has been the most beautiful thing that’s happened to me in my life,” Zidane said in 2021. I think the feeling is mutual.
As with many former players, management beckoned him, and he answered. In 2010, he returned to Los Blancos to embark on this journey, starting as a special advisor to Florentino Perez and Jose Mourinho.
Nevertheless, he must have excelled because a year later, he was appointed Real Madrid’s sporting director. This followed the dismissal of Jorge Valdano, rumored to have fallen out with Jose Mourinho.
Two years later, Zidane became Carlo Ancelotti’s assistant coach, present in the dugout for La Decima.
His progression into this new realm led him to manage Real Madrid Castilla, the B side. However, there was a significant hurdle: he lacked the necessary coaching badges, which, I’ve heard, are quite important in this field. This led to a temporary coaching ban.
Nevertheless, he obtained full qualification in 2015, further enhancing the impressiveness of his subsequent managerial achievements.
Taking the Helm, 2016-2018
This brings us to 2016 and the big job. When Zidane took over midway through the 2015-16 season, many were skeptical. A man who had just earned his coaching badges and had no top-level experience, let alone at the world’s biggest club. How could Perez consider this a wise decision?
It may sound amusing, but there remains a pervasive belief that this move was not a calculated and intelligent decision by Perez and the leadership. They seemingly overlooked Zidane’s success with the B team, his participation in Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich training sessions, seminars with Marcelo Bielsa, and his diligent pursuit of coaching qualifications.
For some inexplicable reason, there’s still a widespread belief that Zinedine Zidane’s entire coaching career boils down to one thing: luck.
Crafting Success, Zidane’s Strategy
A winning formula. Zidane replaced Benitez with the team in less-than-ideal shape. They trailed both Atletico and Barcelona in the league, and despite promising signs under new management, the gap widened by the day. By February, they were 12 points behind the leaders, seemingly out of the title race.
However, Madrid embarked on a 12-game winning streak, narrowing the gap to just one point by season’s end. It was a remarkable turnaround. A stroke of luck? No.
Several factors contributed to Zidane’s success as a manager. Naturally, being one of the greatest players ever earned him instant respect and admiration from every professional footballer.
While Zidane was often the standout on the pitch, he knew how to bring out the best in his teammates. As a player, he excelled at recognizing each player’s strengths and ensuring they were showcased to their fullest. By then, as a playmaker, vision came naturally to him.
Thus, even though he inherited a Champions League-winning squad, his influence ensured continued success. The initial tenets emphasized fitness equating to confidence.
Madrid was somewhat of a hybrid, blending possession-based play with counter-attacking prowess, typically in a 4-3-3 formation. Early in Zidane’s tenure, both Dani Carvajal and Marcelo were full-backs known for their high attacking work rates. In Marcelo’s case, his offensive contributions often overshadowed his defensive duties.
With a midfield trio featuring Luka Modric, Isco, and James Rodriguez, alongside an attacking trio led by Cristiano Ronaldo, Madrid possessed one of the world’s most feared attacks. This blend not only allowed them to dominate domestically but also to navigate the UCL group stage, defeat AS Roma 3-0 in Rome, and overcome German giants Wolfsburg in the quarterfinals.
Despite trailing 2-0 after the first leg, a memorable European night saw Cristiano Ronaldo score a hat-trick at home, making him the first player to score three goals across two legs in the UCL quarterfinals and only the third to achieve a quarterfinal hat-trick.
