This is the type of knee-jerk reaction people think happens in the main forum
Real Madrid need to get ready for a terrible season | It’s happening
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No knee-jerk reaction at all... when Benitez was appointed I knew he was a very bad fit for the team (strict, control-freak, tactically antiquated) and was convinced he would get us nowhere. It took others a couple of months to catch up to that realization and as it finally brought us Zidane (at that time seen as the last bullet of Florentino before he would be the focus of attention and critics) and a very successful time those couple of months are acceptable. But what people may forget is that Zidane was close to being cut, too. During his first few months we played Wolfsburg in the Quarters of the CL and lost away 2-0. It was a very unlucky game as a goal by CR in the first minute got ruled offside when it wasn't and the penalty in favour of the German side was a joke. And one of the very few games we lost by more than a goal under Zidane. But nevertheless an inflection point as he criticized his team publicly after the first leg which they didn't take well. Dressing room leaders told him not to do that again and he never did - and as we won the 2nd leg with 3 CR goals the rest as they say is history. But right until the final whistle we were one deflection, one wrong decision, one error away from going out - and if we had gone out against Wolfsburg of all people Zidane would have been gone that summer, too...
Why that story? Because it shows that even the "right" coaches need a lot of luck to be successful at Real Madrid - and Zidane's luck is proverbial in Spain (no all his success his luck but those inflection points happen to everybody). Lopetegui is already getting close to his as the team is in shambles and after more than 100 days no effect is visible. He picks the same team as Zidane but doesn't have as good a connection to the players. He didn't rest them so the injures are already mounting. The defense is a disaster zone against stronger opposition - and every time we play them, like the Supercup against Atletico, the match in Bilbao, tonight and quite likely the match on Saturday it's a disastrous performance. Even the match against Roma wasn't all that great. Yes, we won 3-0 but it should have been 6 or 7-0. And what was already telling, at 2-0 the team switched off completely in the second half and if Roma had scored (and they had chances) I'm not sure about the final outcome... And seeing how they lost at Bologna a couple of days later they weren't a great test either. Even against Espanyol we needed the crossbar to save us the win at the Bernabeu last weekend...
Lopetegui fits the category of coaches who fail at Real Madrid, very comparable to Juande Ramos, Benitez or Pellegrini, and the coming months will just confirm that. He wilted under the pressure at Porto and at RM it's multiplied. If we lose to Atletico at home (second defeat to them in 2 months) he better pack his bags because there will be no turnaround for him. Not sure about any potential successors but Lopetegui just doesn't have it to be a success at RM.
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Lopetegui is a clear stop-gap signing after Zizou unexpectedly resigned. I'm sure Flo wanted Pochettino but he already stamped his sign for Tottenham days before. The problem is that there aren't any top coaches available. If Real and United sack their coaches at the same time, it's going to be interesting
We don't need a "top coach", Zidane wasn't one either... We need a coach who has the respect of the players, gets them to care and perform and has some kind of useful tactical concept. Lopetegui is playing Zidane's team without its focal point. That makes 0 sense, he should make changes to make it his team and if he isn't up to the task leave. He was the 4th or 5th choice at best as Pochettino, Allegri, Löw and probably some others were offered the job before him.
As far as possible successors the Guti-Raul-Xabi Alonso route would be the most likely and probably the most reasonable one. The question is how dire will the situation have to get under Lopetegui before Florentino kicks him out. I'm sure he feels some sense of moral obligation to him because of how the whole process cost him the World Cup but I don't care about the Spanish national team so for me Lopetegui has one final chance on Saturday. If that game is a loss, too, sack him right then and there.
What people might not realize. We lost one title already with the Supercopa, a game where all the defects we still have were on full display already: Slow start, low physicality in play, no stamina, lightweight attacks, stupid subs, etc. And the last couple of games the curve is showing downhill, we started the league well against teams we have to beat no matter what but then the draw at San Mames against a weak Bilbao side, the win over a very bad Roma side, the lucky win over Espanyol and now this disastrous loss. This wasn't "one bad game that can happen to anyone", this was the logical result of a downturn in form across the entire team in recent weeks.
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Madrid have played 6 games under Lopetegui and you’re currently joint first. Might be a bit too soon to talk about him getting fired ffs.
I agree that there are reasons to be concerned but come on... at least give him a chance.
The only reason we are joint first is because Barca dropped 5 points themselves. The truth is if we lose to Atletico again we will have dropped 8 points in 4 games and have to thank the crossbar that it's not 10 (of 12). That's just unacceptable. Back in the Pellegrini/Mourinho vs Pep era when you needed more or less 100 points to win the title a stretch like that effectively ended your title run. And given the fact that we threw away the league in the first few weeks last season this just confirms that this team won't win any league titles. Lopetegui is digging his own grave by playing Zidane's team without its focal point. Instead of at least attempting to make it his team by changing some things around he is already failing...
And after a promising start to the season Benzema has already returned to his former self... Marcelo is in the physical shape of an ex-player, Kroos is on a 18 month downward spiral, his corner kicks, so deadly at the time of the 2014 World Cup, are terrible now. If I were in charge I would stir things up quite a lot because this team is just showing up in the CL. If Lopetegui wants to have any chance of winning the league title he has to make decisive changes fast, but we all know he won't.
GOAT factor gone ( CR gone )
Benzema and Bale unreliable
Kroos done
Asensio overrated bench material
Marcelo past it
Courtois...
They desperately need Neymar or Mbappé, Kane, a new LB, and built it around Bale, Isco, Modric, Casemiro, Ramos, Varane, Carvajal and Navas.
I'm not sure if Floren is aware of the HUGE task ahead.
Benzema and Bale unreliable
Kroos done
Asensio overrated bench material
Marcelo past it
Courtois...
They desperately need Neymar or Mbappé, Kane, a new LB, and built it around Bale, Isco, Modric, Casemiro, Ramos, Varane, Carvajal and Navas.
I'm not sure if Floren is aware of the HUGE task ahead.
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Your kidding right? Those you’ve listed would walk backwards into just about any team in the world.GOAT factor gone ( CR gone )
Benzema and Bale unreliable
Kroos done
Asensio overrated bench material
Marcelo past it
Courtois...
They desperately need Neymar or Mbappé, Kane, a new LB, and built it around Isco, Modric, Casemiro, Ramos, Varane, Carvajal and Navas.
I'm not sure if Floren is aware of the HUGE task ahead.
They're joint top of La Liga and looked pretty good in the CL. The way this thread is going you would think they are in a relegation battle or something. Worst thing so far this season is losing to Atletico in the super cup. Atletico are a superb team as well though so no shame in that.
Yes they lost 3 0, Seville are good side if very inconsistent. The big 3 Spanish teams will all drop points this season, La Liga is very competitive with a lot of teams that play very good football and can give any team in the world a hard match on their day. RM can't win everything!
Reserving judgement on them till the end of the season at least.
Yes they lost 3 0, Seville are good side if very inconsistent. The big 3 Spanish teams will all drop points this season, La Liga is very competitive with a lot of teams that play very good football and can give any team in the world a hard match on their day. RM can't win everything!
Reserving judgement on them till the end of the season at least.
I gather from your post that you haven't seen a lot of the games this season because you're focussing on the wrong aspects. The joint first thing is completely irrelevant and anecdotal as it's a result of someone else's mistakes, not RM's performance. Because that has been very poor so far this season in the league - and a loss on Saturday would mean even Atletico who had a horrendous start to the season would already have more points. The 3-0 loss to Seville wasn't bad because it was a loss, even under Zidane we didn't win any game there, but the way the team played was simply unacceptable. They didn't show up apart from one or two exceptions. And that after the weak performance against Bilbao, the lucky win against Espanyol and Barca's loss. The warning signs were there and ignored. All form arrows are trending downwards at the moment...
And "looked pretty good in the CL"? I didn't think so. Roma have been woeful so far this season and we were terribly wasteful with the chances in that game. And the way the team switched off in the second half at 2-0 and almost let Roma back in the game was a sign of things to come. If there aren't drastic changes made NOW I can tell you exactly how this season is going to end: Without titles, ano en blanco, and Lopetegui sacked, en la calle. I don't need the season to play out to know that is what's coming because we have seen them throw away the league by not caring numerous times in recent years. There are huge problems already visible that need to be fixed right now and I doubt it that Lopetegui is the right coach to do it - and I doubt that he has the balls to make the decisions necessary.
Try and be positive! You've got one of the best squads in world football even without cr7. Not going to win the CL every season. Give Lopetegui the season at least. Utd fans have reason for negativity, losing and getting outplayed by lower league opposition with the miserable one in charge. Not RM though!
RM have won 3 CLs in a row ffs. Great team and players. I know this is ta Internet, you lot are worse than Perez though! Let's see where the trophies lie at the end of the season, then sack him if not good enough.
RM have won 3 CLs in a row ffs. Great team and players. I know this is ta Internet, you lot are worse than Perez though! Let's see where the trophies lie at the end of the season, then sack him if not good enough.
You don't seem to know a lot about RM, the CL titles are of course great and give especially Florentino some leeway, but this same squad has squandered a couple of the leagues in the last 10 years by simply not caring. That's the reason why these games are so alarming. This isn't about being positive or negative, this is about a group of players exhibiting the same behavior they have for some years now and Lopetegui not having the balls to change things around and make it his team despite the absence of CR.
There's no need to wait this out until the end of the season because we have seen this movie numerous times already in the last 10 years. And not every year will we be as lucky in the CL. It made no sense to keep Benitez for an entire season back then either - and it doesn't with Lopetegui... Tomorrow is his make or break game...
Maybe I'm a knee jerker(if exists that word) but I think like @Karappa, although maybe for different reasons.
I like how he plays, I liked his spanish national team and I think he can do a good job with the youth team, since he knows many of them from the past.
I think he is focusing a lot on his tactics and he is forgetting about the social part of the job.
If the press and the fans hesitate, the players will not follow him.
Madrid have lost four times by three goals in a decade (except Barcelona). Borussia in 2013, Atlético, or Alcorcón in 2009. A defeat like that has to be analyzed, especially since it´s the second time the team has collapsed this season.
Zidane could have defects but his Madrid was very difficult to knock down.
Perhaps the fault lies with certain players who are in bad form, others who begin to believe themselves the masters of the dressing room, or the president for not signing as he should, but we all know who will be the scapegoat.
I like how he plays, I liked his spanish national team and I think he can do a good job with the youth team, since he knows many of them from the past.
I think he is focusing a lot on his tactics and he is forgetting about the social part of the job.
If the press and the fans hesitate, the players will not follow him.
Madrid have lost four times by three goals in a decade (except Barcelona). Borussia in 2013, Atlético, or Alcorcón in 2009. A defeat like that has to be analyzed, especially since it´s the second time the team has collapsed this season.
Zidane could have defects but his Madrid was very difficult to knock down.
Perhaps the fault lies with certain players who are in bad form, others who begin to believe themselves the masters of the dressing room, or the president for not signing as he should, but we all know who will be the scapegoat.
Madrid fans living up to their reputation
The inevitable thrashing of very inexperienced and probably overawed CSKA on Tuesday should get the morale up.
The cold hard truth is that against two Top sides Madrid has reaped 1 point out of 4, and zero goals, while Barça is still leader.
Of course, MARCA will tell you everything about Courtois' fantastic performance.
Of course, MARCA will tell you everything about Courtois' fantastic performance.
You are right (and to that we must add a draw in San Mamés and the match of the supercopa, so of 4 hard games this season, they have lost two and tied two) but Sevilla away and the derby. You left points against Leganes and Athletic at home, and the sensations were not excellent. Being leaders now, and with the same points is not transcendental.
The supercup was the first game of the season, the first with lopetegui, and one month after the world cup. And we lost in extra time, and because Varane had just come back like 5 days before and was less fit than me after the sunday lunch.
Against Athletic we showed more of the same limitations we'd shown against girona, which were the same we'd shown in the previous two seasons. We rebounded well against Girona, and also against Atheltic, were Julen messed up a bit with his lineups. Espanyol and Sevilla were no shows, we didn't bother to show up, simple as that. Yesterday we lacked penetration(as always against them) and were too indecisive with the final ball or shooting. It was both encouraging, the first time this season were i've seen the team play truly differently from last season, and a bit worrying because of the lack of good chances. It was Atletico though, we never create much against them
Lose to CSKA
Once again the team started a game with a complete lack of concentration and intensity, this time it happened in the CL... Yes, these are individual errors of players but in the end it's responsibility of the coach who didn't prepare them correctly - especially if it happens that often.
Moreover we are looking at 5 (!) halves of football without scoring a single goal, that's simply unacceptable... And in those 5 halves we didn't even create a lot of chances, most of the time it was just sterile possession and horizontal passes, resembling the worst of the worst of Pep's Barca. If there is no turnaround in this game and we don't score, Lopetegui has to go. He doesn't reach the players and has no command of the dressing room as is obvious by the numerous slow starts to games and his tactics are terrible at best, clueless at worst. Not scoring and not even creating chances is simply unacceptable and can't be tolerated. If we lose today, he should be gone by tomorrow. Getting sacked twice in Moscow in a couple of months
Moreover we are looking at 5 (!) halves of football without scoring a single goal, that's simply unacceptable... And in those 5 halves we didn't even create a lot of chances, most of the time it was just sterile possession and horizontal passes, resembling the worst of the worst of Pep's Barca. If there is no turnaround in this game and we don't score, Lopetegui has to go. He doesn't reach the players and has no command of the dressing room as is obvious by the numerous slow starts to games and his tactics are terrible at best, clueless at worst. Not scoring and not even creating chances is simply unacceptable and can't be tolerated. If we lose today, he should be gone by tomorrow. Getting sacked twice in Moscow in a couple of months
This is an absolutely disastrous, abysmal performance... Keeping Lopetegui any minute longer is a huge mistake. At the moment we still have chances in all competitions but it's obvious he isn't the right fit (and I doubt he is a great coach). We need a new impulse, new ideas that work because 3 games in a row without scoring? And we never looked like scoring in those three games... This is the worst since the Alcorconazo, completely shambles... I would even take Mourinho over Lopetegui any day of the week... Realistically it should be Conte, Guti or Raul - but Florentino has to act NOW, waiting any longer just damages our chances to win anything this season...
That´s too much
I didn‘t rust the voices against Lopetegui because Real looked great with Isco and Bale. Without them they are getting mid table results at best.
Conte to the rescue?
Conte to the rescue?
What about all the stories that all CR7 does, any striker given a free role and do
Also.. Zidane was only winning because of Madrid
Also.. Zidane was only winning because of Madrid
We wouldn't mind a straight swap.That´s too much
Lopetegui started off very poorly in my opinion by letting Ramos have some much control. Why is he taking all the free kicks and penalties? This team should have been built around Gareth Bale as it was Ronaldo. They need that player but Madrid will never let him be it. Whether he has the ability or not is a different story but they have to give it a go.
I don't think Barca are that much better but they should still win the league easily.
I'll be extremely surprised if one of City or Liverpool do not win the CL. There simply isn't the opposition to stop them.
I don't think Barca are that much better but they should still win the league easily.
I'll be extremely surprised if one of City or Liverpool do not win the CL. There simply isn't the opposition to stop them.
3 games in a row without scoring for Real Madrid, first time this happens since January of 2007.
Luckily they do not need to worry since as soon as Ronaldo goes, Benzema and Mariano will be scoring hattricks left and right while Bale will stop getting injured every month. Any minute now.
Luckily they do not need to worry since as soon as Ronaldo goes, Benzema and Mariano will be scoring hattricks left and right while Bale will stop getting injured every month. Any minute now.
United fans seem to be very patient compared to that.
Lopetegui will get the sack before December. The job is too big for him. He's like their version of Moyes.
Think they hit the bar 3 times today. 26 attempts.
Compare it to our game against Valencia..
Cristiano is smiling right now...and you too!
December? He should be gone right now... According to some sources on Twitter Florentino is thinking about it but he could wait until the national team break. There are hardly any words to describe how bad the last 5 games have been (Athletic, Espanyol, Sevilla, Atletico and CSKA) but the lack of ideas in attack and the lack of intensity and concentration was alarming and a clear and obvious sign the coach isn't reaching the team. And that won't get any better no matter how much time he gets. He just isn't up to the task... Conte, Guti and Raul are apparently looked at as replacements...
I knew that would get a reaction from someoneThat´s too much
But the truth is it can't get any worse with somebody else... We're not only losing, we aren't even scoring...I don't think anyone predicted anything different when he was hired. We all know he'll be lucky to even last a season.December? He should be gone right now... According to some sources on Twitter Florentino is thinking about it but he could wait until the national team break. There are hardly any words to describe how bad the last 5 games have been (Athletic, Espanyol, Sevilla, Atletico and CSKA) but the lack of ideas in attack and the lack of intensity and concentration was alarming and a clear and obvious sign the coach isn't reaching the team. And that won't get any better no matter how much time he gets. He just isn't up to the task... Conte, Guti and Raul are apparently looked at as replacements...
I knew that would get a reaction from someone
As my posts show I didn't expect anything else either... But now is the moment to act and change things up because the season is still young and all titles are still in play. By waiting too long to get Zidane in instead of Benitez Florentino threw away the league that year...
I didn’t watch the Madrid match, just poking some fun since I’ve been in plenty of arguments here over the importance of Ronaldo to Real Madrid in the past 3 years.
absolutely toothless performance. The job looks too big for Lopetegui but at the same time we just don't have good players upfront. Benzemá is a disgrace, Asensio is a ghost when he's not scoring bangers, Bale is always injured, Mariano tries but it's clear he should be a bench player (not behind Benz but behind a quality striker). This was a match for Vinicius IMO, I didn't understand putting Modric in when we already had lots of possession, we just needed goal.
Yesterday el Confidencial joined to the opinions of Inda about the discomfort / lack of understanding of Madrid board due to the lack of minutes from Vinicius and Mariano. Apparently it seems that the club have assumed their mistake for not buying another striker. It is also said that players do not understand the rotations(Modric). Players, by the way,at a very low level.
I wish he could overcome the situation but from what I have seen over the years I would say he is in a complicated situation. The question is whether he will be sacked before or after the winter market.
I wish he could overcome the situation but from what I have seen over the years I would say he is in a complicated situation. The question is whether he will be sacked before or after the winter market.
Cristiano is smiling right now...and you too!
If things continue going badly for Lopetegui who would you take as replacement? Conte? Or wait for the summer to try to get Klopp/Allegri/Pochettino?
Watched the highlights. Lacked Modric and Kroos. After HT they looked better (from HL).
Yeah I know. Have to admit, that result brought a little grin on my face
As predictions go you nailed this one.
I don´t want Klopp or Conte. Pochettino could be an option. Right now Guti, Xabi Alonso or Raúl
If things continue going badly for Lopetegui who would you take as replacement? Conte? Or wait for the summer to try to get Klopp/Allegri/Pochettino?