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Santiago Solari has been thrust straight into the deep end at Real Madrid. The 42-year-old, who spent five years at the club as a player, has been promoted from the Real Madrid B team to take the reins of the senior side following the sacking of former Spanish coach Julen Lopetegui.
Solari takes over the club at a period of drastic uncertainty as the club sits 9th in LaLiga following the worst league start and goalscoring drought in the club's 116-year history. Lopetegui's last game was a 5-1 humiliation in El Clasico at the hands of Barcelona.
Also read: Barcelona 5-1 Real Madrid - 5 Talking Points & Tactical Analysis
Solari: The Player
Solari was born in Argentina in 1976 and began his career with Richard Stockton College in the United States. A return to Argentina saw him take in spells at Newell's Old Boys and Renato Cesarini, but his professional career did not begin until 1996 at River Plate.
Three years later, Atletico Madrid sprung for him and brought him to LaLiga, where he made a lasting impression on the Blancos' hierarchy, having his best season statistically scoring 6 goals and assisting a further 12 as Atletico were relegated from the top flight.
Real immediately brought him on board to be a part of Fiorentino's first coming of the Galacticos. He had a poor first season but started making a name for himself the following year and became a regular.
He even started the Champions League final against Bayer Leverkusen and was heavily involved in the goal that led to Real lifting the Champions League for the 9th time in the club's history.
Solari won two La Liga titles, the Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and Intercontinental Cup in a five-year stint. The Argentine made over 200 appearances for the club and left the club in the summer of 2005 for Inter Milan for 6 million euros, where he went on to win 3 Serie A titles and one Coppa Italia.
Solari: The Coach
He returned to Real in 2013, taking charge of the youth team. Before the 2016/17 season, he was given the reins to the Real Madrid Castilla - Los Blancos' B team that plays in the third tier of Spanish football.
Castilla came in 11th in his first season in charge, eighth in his second, and they currently sit fifth in the league. Defensive frailties have been the cause for the downfall of his Castilla side which conceded 92 goals with a goal difference of just +20 and had a record of 32 wins, 25 losses and 29 draws in his 86 games in charge.
He will now take charge of the senior side as they look to hire a permanent replacement for Lopetegui. Real have a total of two weeks to appoint a new permanent coach, whomever that may be.
Who will be Real Madrid's next coach?
The Spanish Football Federation's (RFEF) rules state that Real Madrid has a fortnight to permanently hire a new coach, or face disciplinary proceedings.
Article 160 in RFEF's General Regulations document reads:
1. If a coaching vacancy occurs after the competition (La Liga) has started, the club will be obliged to find a new coach who is licensed for the category within a maximum time frame of two weeks.
It is worth noting that Solari possesses such a license.
2. Failure to carry out the duties referred to in the previous paragraph will lead to the carrying out of corresponding disciplinary measures by the federation.
Thus, provided he is not appointed the permanent manager, Solari's reign is set to last a maximum of four games, starting with Wednesday's Copa del Rey clash against Melilla.
They then face surprise package Real Valladolid in LaLiga before travelling to the Czech Republic to take on Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League. Their final fixture before November's international break is back in LaLiga against Celta Vigo, by which time Solari's immediate future should be a lot clearer.
By hiring Solari (even if it is on a temporary basis) the club is jumping from one era of uncertainty to another, as his arrival does not ensure that the club will suddenly get rid of all problems they possess and become the free-scoring Real Madrid that we have come to know all these years.
