Former Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich boss Ottmar Hitzfeld has revealed he once turned down the chance to manage Real Madrid.
The ex-boss, who retired from the game in 2014, won the Champions League with Dortmund in 1997 – a feat that brought him to the attention of Los Blancos, who were looking for a new boss to replace Fabio Capello.
Speaking to Blick, Hitzfield said he was approached by the Santiago Bernabeu side that summer but he chose to move into the role of sporting director at the Westfalenstadion rather than join to the European giants. One of his fears, he said, was being fired before he’d had the chance to settle in a new country.
“I turned down the chance to take charge of Real Madrid after we had won the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund in 1997. I lost a fair bit of sleep over that decision. But in the end I thought ‘I will get fired before I even get the chance to learn Spanish’,” he said.
After his stint as sporting director at Dortmund, Hitzfield had two spells in charge at Munich. He guided the club to five Bundesliga titles and the Champions League in 2001. Between 2008 and 2014, he was in charge of the Switzerland national side and retired after the World Cup in Brazil.
