Real Madrid remain on course for a third Champions League – so why is Zidane under threat?

Frenchman Zidane was the mastermind behind another big Champions League victory for Real Madrid last night as they secured a gritty 2-1 win in Paris.

Zidane has already led Madrid to back-to-back European Cups but he faces a battle to hang onto his job with their league form uner huge scrutiny.

The 45-year-old was the emergency replacement for Rafa Benitez in 2016.

He took the reigns in January on a two-and-a-half year deal but was only ever expected to see out the season.

Madrid were in disarray under Benitez and trigger-friendly Floretino Perez needed to act.

Zidane won his first match 5-0 against Deportivo and then became the first Madrid boss since 2007 to win his first Clasico when they ended Barcelona’s 39-match unbeaten run.

The turnaround was remarkable. Players who had grown fed up with the intricacies of Benitez, the training ground tips, the hours and hours of video analysis, were inspired by Zidane – a true legend of the game.

Zidane’s allure from his playing time gave him the instant respect of the players – despite a fairly average time in charge of the Castilla side.

And while the move to appoint Zidane to his first first team manager role came too late for the league – with Madrid finishing that season a point behind Barcelona – it came in time to stir up some momentum in Europe.

On May 28 Real beat rivals Atletico with Zidane becoming the seventh man to win the European Cup as a player and a manager and the second to do it with Real Madrid.

It was Real Madrid’s first victory in the Champions League since the Hampden final in 2002 – when Zidane scored that goal.

And, like Roberto di Matteo at Chelsea in 2012, Zidane was then afforded the chance to continue his work in the hotseat.

Being Real Madrid, where managers drop quicker than flies, Zidane was still under pressure to deliver. But that he did.

Madrid raced to the La Liga title with Cristiano Ronaldo on fire on the way to another Ballon d’Or to draw level with Lionel Messi.

They won it by three points ending a five-year wait for the domestic title. And then they did the unthinkable.

In Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium they became the first side since 1990 to defend the European Cup and the first team to win it back to back in the Champions League form.

They beat Juventus 4-1 to win their 12th title. Zidane was surely now untouchable?

“Zidane can stay at Real Madrid for the rest of his life,” Perez said in July.

“Every Real Madrid fan is so grateful to him, he lifted our level of talent when he arrived in 2001 and was the best player in the world.

“Now he is the best coach in the world. He has been our coach for 17 months but he has done everything possible.”

But there was a feeling in Madrid that failure to get through against PSG last night in the last 16 could have seen him sacked.

Where has it gone wrong for Zidane?

Real Madrid’s league form this season has been woeful. They trail Barcelona by 15 points and even second placed Atletioc by seven.

The star men have struggled with Ronaldo only really turning it on in Europe.

Karim Benzema and been awful and Gareth Bale has struggled to reach the heights of when he first joined and has struggled with injuries.

And it looks like a year too far for a number of players including Luka Modric and Keylor Navas.

Real Madrid started the season with a bang, beating Barcelona 5-1 on aggregate in the Spanish Super Cup.

But they failed to win three of their first five league games – drawing twice and losing once – and have never managed to make the ground up.

Barcelona have been clinical and, despite losing Neymar in the summer and Ousmane Dembele being injured, have been unstoppable.

Messi is scoring as many as ever and has led Ernesto Valverde’s side to new levels domestically. They haven’t been as eye-catching as the sides under Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique but their record stacks up against those great teams.

Real meanwhile have been lurching through the season, only really coming alive in Europe.

The summer was muddled with Alvaro Morata and James Rodriguez leaving and not being properly replaced. Instead faith was shown in the players who had won two European Cups and young players were brought in around them.

Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos came in. But it hasn’t worked. Levels have dropped, age caught up and complacency caught on.

Ronaldo is no longer able to play every game. Benzema can’t find his feet. Navas’ mistakes have been more costly.

Pepe’s departure and Raphael Varane’s injury problems have meant Sergio Ramos has often been paired with Nacho. So the side, rather than getting better, has in fact got worse.

Talk of a huge overhaul in the summer has emerged and names of potential manager replacements have been thrown around: Mauricio Pochettino and Joachim Low appearing to be the favourites.

Neymar and Harry Kane are Perez’s top targets.

But last night’s victory in Paris showed Zidane’s tactical nous and has given him a chance to win a third European title in a row.