Zinedine Zidane, who is widely regarded as a possible successor of Jose Mourinho as Manchester United head coach, was reported to call the Portuguese a few days ago to assure that he was not plotting behind his back.

However, Zidane's old mate and fellow 1998 world champion Christophe Dugarry does not believe in such a phone conversation. "If Zizou has ever called Mourinho, I will not eat one rat, I will eat two. I don't believe it for a single second, because the relationships between the two have never been good," he said.

Nor does Dugarry believe that Zidane will take over at Man United. Asked about the chance of Zizou replacing Mourinho, he said: 'I think it's average because Zizou does not speak a word of English. Also, it's because during this season, he had planned to take care of his children, to spend a quiet year.'