Real Madrid have sacked Julen Lopetegui as manager after four and a half months in charge at the Bernabeu.<\/p>\n
The Spaniard succeeded Zinedine Zidane in June but the crushing 5-1 loss to Barcelona in El Clasico on Sunday was their fifth loss in six games.<\/p>\n
Real, Champions League winners for the past three years, are ninth in La Liga after their worst start since 2001-02.<\/p>\n
The 52-year-old will be “provisionally replaced” by ex-player Santiago Solari, coach of B team Castilla.<\/p>\n
Lopetegui took a training session on Monday but his fate was confirmed following a board meeting.<\/p>\n
A club statement said “there is a great disproportion between the quality of the staff of Real Madrid” and “the results obtained to date”.<\/p>\n
Eight of the current Real squad are on the 30-man shortlist for the 2018 Ballon d’Or.<\/p>\n
Solari has a favourable run of fixtures for the start of his tenure, beginning with a Spanish Cup match against Segunda Division B Group 4 side Melilla on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Real then play Valladolid – sixth in La Liga – on Saturday, Group G’s bottom side Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League on 7 November, and the mid-table Celta Vigo the following Sunday.<\/p>\n
It is the second time Lopetegui has been sacked this year having beendismissed by Spain two days before the World Cup<\/p>\n
That sacking came after it emerged the Spanish football federation was unaware he was in talks to take the Real job after the tournament.<\/p>\n
Real have 14 out of a possible 30 points in the league this season and have taken only one from their past five matches – their worst run since they went pointless in the final five games of 2008-09 under Juande Ramos.<\/p>\n
They are now six points above the Spanish top flight’s relegation places, and seven behind leaders Barcelona.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
(BC )<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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