Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said he does not blame Luka Jovi for failing to succeed with the Spanish soccer champions after the Serbian striker scored twice in his first match with Eintracht Frankfurt, which he scored the same in 18 months in Madrid.
Jovic is one of the players who proved their worth after a fruitless period at Real under Zidane, such as Sergio Reguilon, Tottenham Hotspur defender and Inter Milan's Ashraf Hakimi.
Zidane told a press conference, before facing Alquiano in the King's Cup on Wednesday, saying that "it is easy to blame the coach, but it is very difficult to play at Real Madrid."
He added, "Some of the players decided to stay with their knowledge that it was very difficult to play here, and Luca included them, and they had to leave to prove their abilities."
Real signed with Jovic from Eintracht for 60 million euros in 2019, but he participated only 6 times in the league and scored two goals, and he was involved in problems outside the stadium after violating a curfew in Serbia due to the Corona pandemic and later injured his foot during a training at his home.
The Serbian striker returned to his former club on loan and left a swift imprint in his first match by scoring two late goals and winning 3-1 over Schalke 04.
The French coach defended the Serbian player's deal two years ago, and said he could still play a good run in Madrid, but stressed that the strength of the team's competition had not worked in his favor.
"Luca has a bright future ahead of him and he can show his abilities here. Competition is fierce here and this is not the coach's fault."
Zidane is expected to make major changes to the squad in front of the third-tier Alkoyano, but he fears a surprise.
"There are a lot of surprises in the cup," he said. "Small clubs have opportunities to play against the big clubs, so they are doing great things."