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What's the story?
Real Madrid skipper Sergio Ramos has sent out an injunction to Antonio Conte, who is the supposed successor of the struggling Julen Lopetegui. The star defender has warned the former Chelsea and Juventus boss that he cannot establish his authority over the players overnight.
In case you didn't know...
Ever since the departure of Champions League winner Zinedine Zidane, Los Blancos have seen more downs than ups in their campaign. With just four wins from 10 matches, they have dropped to 9th place.
Most recently, Ramos and co. stumbled to a demoralizing 5-1 defeat at the hands of fierce rivals Barcelona, with the major talking point of the game being Lopetegui's uncertain future - which is surely hanging by a thin piece of thread at the moment.
The heart of the matter
The Spanish powerhouse has now lost five matches out of the previous seven in all competitions. They have four defeats already in the league, two lesser than their loss tally for the whole of last season.
When asked if the appointment of Antonio Conte would steady the ship at Santiago Bernabeu, Ramos commented:
"Respect is earned, it is not imposed. Neither a name nor another. ‘We have won everything with coaches that you already know, in the end the management of the players is more important than the technical knowledge of a coach."
He also put forth a statement on the manager's current situation and refused to answer if he would be axed. He remarked:
"I have always said the same, they are not decisions that run at our hands. We are to death with the coach who is always in charge, those decisions are taken by those above. We will see what happens in the next few hours."
What's next?
Real Madrid aren't a side known for their patience with managers, and not it may not take a lot of time to sack Lopetegui if the hierarchy has lost faith in his abilities. Meanwhile, the Galacticos travel to Melilla on November 1st as the Copa del Rey returns.
