He has passed his probation period
Real Madrid are set to make interim manager Santi Solari’s position at the club permanent after an upturn in form since he took over two weeks ago.
After Julen Lopetegui was sacked following an embarrassing 5-1 defeat to Barcelona in the clásico, Solari was made interim boss and has taken Madrid on a run of four consecutive wins, the latest of which came on Sunday night at Balaídos away to Celta Vigo.
An ‘easy’ run of games has allowed Madrid to regain their confidence in front of goal, with Karim Benzema bagging three goals in his last two matches, having gone on a run of eight games without finding the net under Lopetegui.
As stated by LaLiga rules, an ‘interim’ manager can only remain so for a period of two weeks, after which the club must make a decision on whether they will keep them on permanently or hire someone else.
Solari appears to have earned himself the right to take charge of the team for the remainder of the season, at which point Madrid will almost certainly dive back into the managerial market in search of a new long-term boss.
This news comes from El Chiringuito TV, who last night reported an exclusive on the club’s decision to keep Solari on until the end of the season.
🚨¡EXCLUSIVA de @jpedrerol!🚨 "SOLARI será el ENTRENADOR DEFINITIVO del REAL MADRID hasta FINAL de TEMPORADA" ¡VENTE a #ElChiringuitoDeMega! pic.twitter.com/n9Pvkprs0U
— El Chiringuito TV (@elchiringuitotv) November 11, 2018
Solari played for Real Madrid between 2000-2005 before moving on to join Inter Milan. After retirement, he went into coaching and took charge of Madrid’s B team, ‘Real Madrid Castilla’, in 2016 after Zinedine Zidane made the step up to the first team following Rafa Benítez’s dismissal.
Madrid fans will be hoping that Solari continues to follow in Zidane’s footsteps and wins the Champions League in his first season in senior management, although that feels much less likely than in previous seasons.
