See why Jose Mourinho lost out to Zinedine Zidane in the race for the Real Madrid job

There was a time when Jose Mourinho’s reputation for developing an unbreakable relationship with his players and bringing instant success to football clubs went before him.

The fact that he has lost his duel with Zinedine Zidane for the Real Madrid job underlies how different things are now.

When Real Madrid president Florentino Perez asked Zidane to come back to the club, only to find those overtures rejected, Mourinho became the leading candidate by default.

Perez likes and admires him. He had been on a media mission to sell the idea he would love a return. Conversations between intermediaries made it clear finalising a three year contract would not be problematic.

A television channel in Madrid even announced on Thursday that a deal had been done. Telemadrid subsequently apologised for ‘going to soon’ but many believed it was still only a matter of time before Mourinho would be announced as the new coach.

Sportsmail consulted sources close to the club on Sunday night and was told everything was set for his reappointment and that the club was just waiting for Perez to ‘press the button’. But that he still harbored reservations about doing so.

The man who has hired and fired six coaches in the last six years had doubts over what effect re-hiring Mourinho would have, on a club already in a state of near civil war.

The dressing room had rejected the idea from the start and the president was faced with the prospect of it being torn apart if he returned.

Captain Sergio Ramos led the opposition. He fought with Mourinho when he coached the club between 2010 and 2013. Other veterans of that period: Karim Benzema and Marcelo, were also against the idea.

When Ramos argued with Perez in the home dressing room after the Ajax defeat telling him he would get rid of him – to which Ramos replied: pay me and I’ll go – the president was raging and prepared to overlook the players’ objections and hire a man who could purge the dressing room.

But when tempers cooled his doubts returned. The club went back to Zidane offering greater concessions and complete freedom to make a Madrid in his image. The 46-year-old French coach ended up accepting the offer.

Zidane still lives in Madrid close to the club's training ground with his wife Veronique Fernandez. His youngest sons Theo and Elyaz, 16 and 13, are still very much in the club’s youth system, and elder son Luca is the team's third choice goalkeeper.

His return will mark a major u-turn away from knee-jerk reactions and short-termism and towards trying to give a coach a long-run at one of the hardest jobs in football.

The consequences will be wide-reaching. Gareth Bale could be the biggest victim. He did not end on good terms with Zidane when he left the club last summer.

There was no public 'goodbye and good luck' message to the departing manager. as there was from many other players. Zidane is not known for holding grudges but all the same the dye looks cast.

Bale wanted Santiago Solari to remain in charge but as he said his goodbye to the players on Monday morning – with Bale working out in the gym as he continues to recover from an ankle twist - it became clear that was not going to happen.

Bale is on a huge contract that runs until 2022 and it will still be difficult to push him out but the first team opportunities could diminish.

Zidane has also been told that he will have a major say over who arrives in the summer.

The days of £300m spends are gone but Madrid are likely to make one huge signing and fund other additions with money from players sold.

Zidane's long-held desire to work with Eden Hazard will be reignited although Madrid must wait to see if Chelsea’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration in Sport enables them to postpone their transfer ban.

Zidane got out of the club last summer warning that selling Cristiano Ronaldo and making no big signing to replace him would end in sporting disaster. He has been proved right and is now back to rebuild from the ruins.

Mourinho was up to the same challenge. But president Perez decided the collateral damage would be too great and has ended up turning back to someone who he knows will be able reunite almost everyone at the club behind a common cause