Real Madrid announced on Monday evening the dismissal of Julen Lopetegui as a head coach of the team after the hard defeat in El Clásico on Sunday. Santiago Hernán Solari, who was training Castilla, was appointed as the new head coach provisionally. At least, the Argentinian will be seated on the bench in the two games this week, against Melilla in Copa del Rey and Valladolid in La Liga. The club is still looking for another manager.
It was evident that the team needed a change and Lopetegui’s dismissal was inevitable after the fourth defeat in La Liga, this time in El Clásico, with the team completely lost. The team is now in the 9th position in the table, something unacceptable for a club like Real Madrid. However, now someone wonder why the bosses waited so many time to sack him or why was he signed in the very first place if nobody believed in his project.
Real Madrid was very harsh in the press release confirming the news: “The Board of Directors understands that there is a great disproportion between the quality of the staff of Real Madrid, which has eight players nominated for the next Ballon d’Or, something unprecedented in the history of the club, and the results obtained to date”, the statement says. Besides, Lopetegui had to train on Monday morning, preparing the game against Melilla, even if everybody knew that Lopetegui was going to be sacked immediately. .
Now there is a big question mark about who will be the next Real Madrid head coach. Santiago Solari is the substitute but only for the next few games, because Florentino Pérez is still looking for a permanent replacement. Antonio Conte was the first candidate, but the Italian manager wasn’t very welcomed in the dressing room. So the president is still looking for several options. Even if Solari could be ready after more than two years in Castilla, Florentino is not willing to put that pressure on his shoulders.
