Jose Mourinho Was Overlooked for Real Madrid Job Due to Reservations From Key Players

Jose Mourinho was overlooked for the Real Madrid job, in favour of Zinedine Zidane, because of reservations from key figures in the dressing room, according to reports.

Mourinho was thought to be one of the leading candidates to replace Santiago Solari at the Bernabeu, however it was not to be as Zidane was announced as Los Blancos' new manager on Monday, just ten months after the leaving the club.

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The former Manchester United and Chelsea boss also has experience managing Real Madrid

following his three-year stint between 2010-2013, although it appears that Mourinho's previous tenure at the club counted against him when the Spanish giants looked for a new manager.

According to the Daily Mail, the dressing room, led by club captain Sergio Ramos, rejected the idea of Mourinho returning to Real Madrid, with other senior players such as Karim Benzema and Marcelo sharing the same view of the Spaniard, resulting in president Florentino Perez deciding to appoint Zidane instead. 

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Although Mourinho won La Liga, the Spanish Cup and the Spanish Super Cup during his three years in the capital, his time at the club was also remembered for fall-outs with the likes of Ramos and goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who was dropped in favour of Diego Lopez. 

Opting for Zidane over Mourinho, Real Madrid hope the Frenchman can restore pride and success following a week that saw Los Blancos suffer back-to-back home defeats to Barcelona and a humiliating Champions League round of 16 exit to Ajax, which signalled the end for Solari.

Zidane, who won three Champions League finals as manager in his first stint, will have 11 La Liga games to contend with between now and the end of the season. However with a 12-point gap between themselves and leaders Barcelona, it's unlikely the club will finish the season with silverware of any sort.