Real reward for Solari as interim coach tag ditched
INTERIM Real Madrid manager Santiago Solari was appointed permanent coach yesterday after overseeing a startling upturn in the European champion’s fortunes since he stepped in to replace Julen Lopetegui.
“Everything is in order. Real Madrid has worked out his contract and there are no problems,” the Spanish football federation stated.
Solari has led Real to four wins out of four since being installed on a caretaker basis following Lopetegui’s abrupt sacking last month. And with 15 goals scored and only two conceded he has established the best ever start for a Real manager.
After thrashing Melilla in the Copa del Rey, it won 5-0 away to Viktoria Plzen in the UEFA Champions League, between victories over Real Valladolid and Celta Vigo in La Liga.
The upturn has left Real only four points adrift of league leader Barcelona and on the brink of qualification for the last 16 in Europe.
Solari, who spent five years playing for Real, was promoted from his role in charge of Castilla, the club’s B team, after Lopetegui had overseen a miserable run that included just one victory in seven games.
The last of those, a 5-1 thumping at the hands of Barcelona, proved the final straw for club president Florentino Perez but the team has rebounded under its new coach. Solari is Perez’s 13th manager in 15 seasons across two seperate periods at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“He has done excellently,” club director Emilio Butragueno said on Sunday. “We are very happy with how things have gone.”
Few could argue with the results, which have now earned Solari the chance to prove himself over a longer period.
He indicated in his opening press conference that he was open to keeping the job fulltime. “It’s a great opportunity and it’s a great club,” the Argentinean said. “Real is bigger than all of us but it touches us all with its greatness. I want to be a part of it.”
Zinedine Zidane also stepped up mid-season from coaching Castilla in 2016 and led the team to UCL glory five months later.
Solari has played down the comparisons with Zidane, who commanded instant respect owing to his glittering playing career and long-established status at the club, enhancing his status as a Real legend by winning three straight UCL crowns.
The challenge for Solari will be to manage the dressing room when results go bad.
After the international break, Real’s generous run of games continues with league matches against Eibar, Valencia, Huesca, Rayo Vallecano and Villarreal before Christmas, none of whom currently reside in the top half.
It will also play AS Roma in Italy and CSKA Moscow at home in the UCL, two games likely to settle who is top of Group G.
This will be Solari’s maiden job in charge of a first team.
Antonio Conte, Mauricio Pochettino, Jose Mourinho and Joachim Low had all been linked to the job, with fresh approaches still possible next summer.