Pochettino leads a four-man Real Madrid manager shortlist as Florentino Perez prepares for another reset
Real Madrid are already past the stage of debating whether Alvaro Arbeloa stays. The coach, handed the job in January when Xabi Alonso was dismissed, will not be renewed once the season ends, and Florentino Perez has moved on to picking his successor. The shortlist, according to reports in Spain and the UK, has four names on it, and none of them are Arbeloa.
Why Pochettino is the front-runner
Mauricio Pochettino is the one the Real Madrid president is said to rate most highly. The Argentine has been on Perez's radar before, and his availability is the main timing problem. Pochettino is currently with the United States men's team heading into a home World Cup, and a switch cannot happen until after the tournament ends in July 2026. Real Madrid have historically worked around that kind of delay before, and Pochettino's profile, a serial club builder with Premier League, Ligue 1 and international experience, ticks the boxes Perez is asking for.
Klopp is on the list but not chasing it
Jurgen Klopp is also shortlisted, and internally there are supporters inside the club. The problem is Klopp himself. The German left Liverpool in 2024, took up a role as head of global soccer at Red Bull, and has been clear in recent interviews that he is not ready to return to a dugout. Reports that Germany want him to take over the national side after the World Cup are unlikely to help Real Madrid's case. If Klopp is coming back to management, the smart money is still on Berlin, not Chamartin.
Deschamps and Zidane round out the four
Didier Deschamps has been the France head coach since 2012 and has said this will be his final World Cup cycle. He fits the profile of a steady, tournament-tested coach, and his availability lines up with Real Madrid's summer window. Zinedine Zidane is the sentimental choice and has won three Champions Leagues with the club already, but he has a verbal understanding in place to succeed Deschamps with France after the World Cup, which makes a third Bernabeu stint hard to line up.
What Perez is actually buying
Real Madrid have won neither La Liga nor the Champions League this season, went out to Bayern in the quarter-finals, and are still six points off Barcelona at the top with six games to go in La Liga. That is the context for the search. Perez has done this before, a reset on the bench and in the squad, and the four names on the list suggest he wants stature and tournament pedigree over a project coach. Whoever gets the job will inherit Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and a midfield that needs real rebuilding, which is either the best or the worst opening inheritance in European football depending on the day.
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