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Managing a club like Real Madrid requires great attention to detail and an eye for talent. It is one of the toughest jobs in the sport, as the stakes are very high. The standards set at the club are high. So a manager is expected to hit the ground running as soon as they are appointed.
Many past Real Madrid managers have done so at the club, and in great style. They have been part of the reason Los Blancos have a legacy of being serial winners.
Under chairman Florentino Perez, Real Madrid have gone from strength to strength, winning every major trophy on multiple occasions. He is the think-tank and mastermind behind Real Madrid's rise to global recognition. Madrid have won 26 trophies during Perez's near two-decade-long reign as president.
One can argue that Real Madrid have always had the world's resources at their disposal. They have made record-breaking signings like Cristiano Ronaldo (£80 million from Manchester United) or Gareth Bale (£85 million from Tottenham Hotspur). They have also spent the big bucks to appoint a plethora of world-class managers.
However, like any other club, Real Madrid have also made managerial mistakes. Whether it is a lack of prior research, a stop-gap appointment or a shot in the dark - Los Blancos have had their share of misfits at their helm.
While most Real Madrid managers won a trophy or two and had a good win rate, there are some who were abysmal, to say the least. They did not manage to win the board over, let alone the raucous and passionate Santiago Bernabeu crowd.
On that note, here's a look at five such managers whose tenures in Madrid were forgettable:
#5 John Toshack (February 1999 - November 1999; 51.35% win rate)
John Toshack was a prolific striker in his playing days, netting 172 goals over 397 games for Cardiff City, Liverpool and Swansea City.
It was during his spell with the mighty Liverpool side of the 1980s that saw him reach the pinnacle of club football. Toshack won the European Cup (1976-77) and the UEFA Cup (1972-73, 1975-76) with The Reds.
The Welshman later went on to manage several sides across Europe in a career that spanned nearly 40 years. He also fittingly handed a Wales debut to Gareth Bale, who would play for Real Madrid later in his career.
In 1999, following the mid-season sacking of manager Guus Hiddink, Real Madrid were on the lookout for an immediate replacement ,and turned to the Welshman. John Toshack had previously managed the Los Blancos between July 1989 and November 1990, winning the La Liga title. It seemed like a smart appointment to bring him in Toshack to try and stabilise the ship mid-season.
However, in his second spell, things were not as good as they were in his first. In 37 games, Toshack's team registered only 19 wins, nine draws and nine losses. His winning percentage was down from 64% in his first spell to 51%. What was even more alarming was that Real Madrid conceded more goals (62) in Toshack's second spell than they did in his first (56) - in nearly half the number of games.
In hindsight, Toshack's appointment was nothing more than a panicked move. Real Madrid spent a huge sum to prise away the Welshman from Besiktas, whom he was managing until then. Alas, the move did not work out well for either party.
#4 Juan Ramon Lopez Caro (December 2005 - June 2006; 50% win rate)
Juan Ramon Lopez Caro has managed several club and national sides over his nearly 20-year-long career. During the 1990s, he had successive jobs in the Spanish divisions, earning a good reputation in Spain.
In his first managerial job in the 1998-99 season with UD Melilla, he propelled the side to first position in Segunda Division B. He later became manager of RCD Mallorca B, and managed them in the UEFA Intertoto Cup. Following these successes, he was snapped up by Los Blancos in 2001 as the coach of Real Madrid Castilla, the club's reserve team.
In 2005, Caro helped Castilla achieve promotion to the Segunda Division. Later that year, he was appointed as the manager of the first team after Vanderlei Luxemburgo was sacked.
In 24 games, Lopez Caro's Madrid won 12, drew nine games and lost three, though. They played a cautious style of football and lacked killer instinct on the pitch. Their win percentage was down to 50% as compared to 63% under previous manager Luxemburgo.
The opportunity to manage the main team probably came too soon for Caro, and he was soon replaced by Fabio Capello the next summer. The Italian ended up winning the La Liga title in 2006, further proving that his predecessor's appointment was a wrong one.
#3 Alfredo di Stefano (November 1990 - March 1991; 42.86% win rate)
Alfredo di Stefano was Real Madrid's all-time top goalscorer until a certain Cristiano Ronaldo emerged to break most of his scoring records. Di Stefano scored a whopping 487 goals in 669 career appearances in his club career. Over 300 of those goals came for Madrid, making him their highest goalscorer at that time.
One would scratch their head seeing Di Stefano on this list, considering his staggering exploits as a player. However, he didn't enjoy the same success from beyond the touchline. His second managerial stint at the club was something to forget.
In his first stint, Los Blancos won 63, drew 23 and lost 22 of his 108 games in charge, scoring 192 goals and conceding 113. Fast forward a few years, and Real Madrid struggled under the legend once again.
Madrid's win percentage dropped from 59% in his Di Stefano's first spell to 42%. In 21 games, Di Stefano managed nine wins, three draws and nine losses. That made him one of the only managers in Real Madrid's history to have the same number of wins and losses after 20 games in charge of the club in multiple stints.
It seemed as though each time Alfredo di Stefano returned to the Bernabeu, his reputation got diminished.
#2 Julen Lopetegui (June 2018 - October 2018; 42.86% win rate)
Julen Lopetegui came to Real Madrid at a time when arguably any manager in world football would have been intimidated.
Los Blancos were on the back of three successive triumphs in the UEFA Champions League. They had initiated a shift of power from FC Barcelona's hands into their own. Zinedine Zidane was the flag-bearer for the side, managing them back to the top. His successor, though, failed to reach those lofty heights.
Lopetegui was a goalkeeper during his playing days, making 317 appearances, with most of them for Rayo Vallecano. Soon after retiring as a player in 2002, he joined the managerial ranks in Spain's youth set-up as a coach for the U-17s. His first major club position was as manager of FC Porto between 2014 and 2016. After that, he managed Spain before he was appointed the Real Madrid boss.
In his 14 games in charge, Madrid won six, drew two and lost six games, scoring 21 and conceding 20 goals. What exacerbated matters was that his first game in charge was a 4-2 loss to bitter rivals Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup in 2018. He also endured a 5-1 reverse at Barcelona in the league in October 2018.
Big defeats against their fiercest rivals are inexcusable at a club like Real Madrid, and Lopetegui learnt that the hard way.
#1 Amancio Amaro (May 1984 - April 1985; 40.43% win rate)
Amancio Amaro Varela, commonly known simply as 'Amancio' is a former Real Madrid, Deportivo La Coruna and Spain player. He played as a wide right or right winger. The Spaniard scored 173 goals in 436 appearances in club football, and 11 in 42 appearances for his national team.
Amancio is another former player-turned-manager on this list, and unfortunately, his record is the worst. In his 47 games in charge, Real Madrid won 19, drew 13 and lost 15, scoring 69 goals and conceding a whopping 52. That gave him a win rate of just 40% - extraordinarily poor by Real Madrid's standards. As you can tell from these numbers, the club was being pulled in two directions.
While they got some wins, the way they dropped points in draws and defeats was absymal. Los Blancos conceded more than one goal per game throughout Amancio's tenure. That's one of the biggest red flags for a side looking to win championships.
It is unfortunate to see players with glorious careers not enjoy the same success in their managerial stints. That's because managing a team is a different ball game than playing for one, making the transition challenging.
