Real sack Lopetegui but plan to court Conte in limbo
Sunday’s 5-1 La Liga Clasico hammering at Barcelona was the final act of Julen Lopetegui’s disastrous and short spell as Real Madrid coach — but the Bernabeu outfit may now remain in limbo, as talks with former Chelsea manager Antonio Conte broke down yesterday, writes
Madrid have taken just one point from their last five La Liga games, with Lopetegui looking increasingly alone and forlorn on the sideline, falling to ninth in the La Liga table, closer to the relegation zone than leaders Barca.
The axe fell via a cold club statement following a board meeting at the Bernabeu last night, after Lopetegui’s 14 games brought six wins, two draws and six defeats — the worst start by a Madrid boss in over 50 years.
Conte had been widely expected to take charge with a brief to shake up a dressing room of underperforming stars, but instead youth team coach Santi Solari has been promoted on a caretaker basis.
Lopetegui’s short spell of just 139 days as coach brought a 4-2 Uefa Supercup defeat to neighbours Atletico Madrid in his official debut, a run of over eight hours without scoring a goal, and unacceptable losses to lower status rivals Levante, Alaves, and CSKA Moscow.
After Sunday’s humiliation at their most bitter rivals, Madrid midfielder Casemiro admitted that “the 1-5 is the image of our season so far — we are a disaster, all playing very badly”.
A pale and shook looking Lopetegui put forward a very different perspective at his final news conference, claiming only misfortune stopped his team equalising and going on to win the game, and that he still expected to be overseeing success come April or May.
Casemiro’s view of the situation was more widely shared among those who had watched Madrid lately.
“Lopetegui achieved the impossible, that his excuses sounded even worse than [his team’s] ridiculous performance on the pitch,” wrote pundit Gonzalo Cabeza.
The former Madrid back-up goalkeeper, scout and youth coach’s return to the Bernabeu last summer, instead of coaching Spain through the World Cup, was ill-fated. After a very short honeymoon spell including a 3-0 victory over Roma in their opening Champions League game, he has been close to the edge since consecutive defeats against CSKA Moscow and Alaves.
But just like last summer, when top targets including Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp, Tottenham’s Mauricio Pochettino and Juventus’ Max Allegri declined to be considered to replace Zinedine Zidane, Perez has been unable to find a suitable figure to step in.
The weeks since have allowed for a deeper examination of Lopetegui’s unfortunate CV, including calamitous first games as a goalkeeper for both Madrid and Barcelona, and fainting live on TV when working as a pundit during World Cup 2006. Many are now wondering how he ever managed to land the biggest job in club management.
Bernabeu chief decision maker Perez has so far escaped censure for that call, but received plenty of criticism for letting the club’s record goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo leave last summer without signing a top class replacement.
Former Madrid player, coach, and sporting director Jorge Valdano spoke admiringly on Spanish radio Sunday night of Zidane’s intelligence in picking his moment to resign immediately after winning a third straight UCL.
Construction magnate Perez, 71, is widely thought keen to appoint a strict disciplinarian to put manners on underperforming players, despite Madrid’s successes this century mostly coming under ‘player whisperers’ Zidane, Carlo Ancelotti, and Vicente Del Bosque.
Hence the willingness to wait while Conte sorted some outstanding issues over his Chelsea exit last summer, and some fading hopes that Jose Mourinho could yet be prised back from Manchester United.
Asked on Sunday whether Madrid’s big names needed a ‘strong hand’ to put them back on the right path, club captain Sergio Ramos sent an advance message to whoever is the new coach. “You win respect, you don’t impose it,” Ramos retorted. “We’ve won a lot with certain coaches, you know who they are. Sometimes managing the dressing room is more important than technical know-how.”
Next up for Madrid is tomorrow’s awkwardly timed Copa del Rey last 32 first leg at third-tier side Melilla.
Former Madrid and Argentina midfielder Solari has no top level coaching experience, but could now be in charge until next month’s international break at least.
Last night’s announcement put Lopetegui out of his misery, but Madrid’s woes remain far from over.
Who’s next for Real?
: A title winner in Italy and England, the 49-year-old left Chelsea under a cloud over the summer following a disappointing 2017-18 campaign. A chance to move to a club with the stature of Real would suit the former Italy boss, while Conte has the character to deal with the pressure at the Bernabeu and is one of the early front-runners with the bookmakers following the decision to part company with Lopetegui.
: The man who has been placed in temporary charge. Real have shown a tendency to promote from within and their former midfielder and now reserve coach could follow in the footsteps of Zinedine Zidane, who stepped up to take the reins of the senior side midway through the 2015-16 season and guided them to three successive Champions League titles before standing down earlier this year. Solari played 131 times for Real, winning two LaLiga titles and one Champions League crown.
: The Frenchman ended his 22-year tenure as Arsenal boss at the end of the season and is a long-term target of Real president Florentino Perez. The 68-year-old has claimed for years that he turned down many big clubs to stay loyal to the Gunners but now has the freedom to listen to such offers. He has struggled to compete at the business-end of the Premier League and in Europe in recent years but could be seen as an ideal short-term solution.
: A true Real Madrid man, the former playmaker won five LaLiga titles and three Champions Leagues during a career which included almost 550 appearances for Los Merengues. The 41-year-old coached the youth teams at the club for several years following the end of his playing career but left the club in the summer to become Senol Gunes’ assistant at former club Besiktas. He would be a favourable appointment with Real supporters, even if he lacks big-game experience as a boss.
: The Argentinian has been linked with the Real top job for some time but signed a new deal at Tottenham earlier this year. Pochettino is yet to win a major trophy, which could work against him, but the former Espanyol boss has been praised for his approach and for promoting young talent. He made suggestions towards the end of last season that he could depart Tottenham but his fresh five-year deal makes that unlikely given just how much compensation Real would have to pay.
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