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It may be quite early on in the season but some managers have struggled to get their teams up and running. Owing to the teams' poor run of results some managers are facing backlash.
Manchester United got a positive result yesterday defeating Newcastle 3-2 after a great comeback where they overcame a 2 goal deficit but things are still not rosy for United and Mourinho who will be facing Chelsea, Juventus, Everton, Bournemouth and Manchester City as soon as the international break ends.
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid too are on a winless streak and have struggled to win any of their last 4 matches. Bayern were thumped by Monchengladbach by 3 goals whereas Madrid lost to Alaves in stoppage time. Here we take a look at managers who have landed themselves in hot water and could be given the boot.
#3. Julen Lopetegui
The man chosen to replace Zinedine Zidane after his majestic stint as a manager at Real Madrid was Julen Lopetegui. Zinedine Zidane managed to win 3 successive UCL titles in his short stint of two and a half years at the helm. Lopetegui was the man burdened to lead this side after Zidane's departure. Not only did he have the pressure to replicate Zidane's success but he even had to deal with the loss of the club's star man, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Lopetegui's first test came against their bitter noisy neighbors, Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup which saw Real Madrid lose 4-2. The loss was hard to take but no one blamed the manager as it was his first game and the team was in a transition phase.
Real Madrid then made a promising start to their La Liga campaign winning 13 points out of 15 in their first five games. The Spanish side started their UCL campaign also by thrashing Roma in the opening gameweek but since then it's all gone downhill.
Real Madrid were battered by Sevilla 3-0 followed by a poor show in the derby against Atletico. To make matters worse Madrid lost their next 2 games against CSKA Moscow in UCL and Alaves in La Liga. Real Madrid have now gone over 6 hours without scoring a goal and have been conceding silly goals.
One man currently facing the heat is Lopetegui who needs to get his team up and running after this slump or his job may be in real danger.
#2. Niko Kovac
Niko was appointed the manager of Bayern Munich after an impressive stint with Eintracht Frankfurt. His side started the Bundesliga campaign well winning their first four games. Bayern Munich looked comfortable on top of the table until their form dipped drastically. They drew against Augsburg and lost three successive games against Hertha, FC Augsburg and Monchengladbach, allowing Borrusia Dortmund to top the league.
Bayern also did not have best of the UCL nights when they could only get a point against Ajax drawing 1-1.
It is believed that Kovac also does not have the confidence of the team with reports emerging that James Rodriguez had an outburst after he was not picked for games even after poor displays by his teammates.
For Niko Kovac it may be really difficult as Bayern in the recent past have easily won the Bundesliga and such results are not helping his cause.
#1. Jose Mourinho
Mourinho, after a trophyless season, would have looked forward to this season in hunt of some silverware. The disappointing transfer market was only the beginning of a disastrous start to the season. Manchester United currently sit at the eighth position on the Premier League points table after dropping points against Brighton, Tottenham, Wolves and West Ham.
Manchester United's subpar performances were not just limited to the Premier League but the Carabao Cup as well where they lost out to Championship side Derby County. Losing to Derby County was quite embarrassing for Mourinho's men. The only thing United fans can cheer about is they are still unbeaten in UCL, sharing points against Valencia and thrashing Young Boys.
The talk of Mourinho facing the sack this early in the season have already been doing the rounds and there are speculations that United may try to rope in Zinedine Zidane to clear this mess.
For United to win some silverware this season, they need a major change in fortune.
