Santiago Solari needs to be ruthless at Real Madrid after rude awakening

Aditya Devavrat 23:25 27/11/2018
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  • Perhaps Santiago Solari should have stayed interim manager.

    In his first game in charge of Real Madrid since being named the permanent manager of the club, Solari saw his side slump to a 3-0 defeat to Eibar. That’s the second time Los Blancos have been beaten 3-0 on the road, following their loss to Sevilla earlier in the season, and of course there was also the 5-1 reverse to Barcelona. It certainly hasn’t been happy travels for this Madrid side.

    The result means Solari’s start, becoming the first manager to win his first four games for Real Madrid, is already irrelevant. The crisis he had eased with that run of victories is back.

    And Solari himself has questions to answer.

    Why does he not start Isco? The Spanish playmaker has suffered a drop in form at times this season, sandwiched around his appendicitis-induced layoff, but he almost always looks like Madrid’s best player, the most likely one to make anything happened.

    Is it time to break up the Luka ModricToni Kroos axis? That midfield duo had seen a mini-revival over the previous four games, but they can often look slow and outmatched, especially without Casemiro, as they were on Saturday.

    Who does he target up front? Karim Benzema keeps getting praise from various quarters, but his powers are waning. Gareth Bale started the season on a tear, looking ready to replace Cristiano Ronaldo, but has since fallen off. And Marco Asensio doesn’t even have the benefit of early-season form to make his case.

    Vinicius Junior, who came on as a substitute on Saturday – though by that time the game was already gone – deserves a chance to start and show what he can do when more responsibility is thrust upon him.

    Likewise, until the transfer window opens in January and reinforcements can be brought in, perhaps it’s time to turn to Lucas Vazquez, who is less talented than Asensio or Isco but usually puts in performances filled with desire and determination – qualities that seem to have gone missing from this Madrid side.

    Is it time to drop Sergio Ramos? The Madrid captain continues to earn accolades as one of the best centre-backs around, but his defending has bordered on the reckless this season. Trying too much to be a Franz Beckenbauer-like conductor of Madrid’s attack, he instead gets caught out of position and leaves the rest of his defence to pick up the pieces.

    And, big transfer fee or not, Thibaut Courtois has not been up to scratch in goal. The defence isn’t helping, but Courtois’ own form has tanked. Luckily for Madrid, they have a backup goalkeeper good enough to start for most sides in the world in Keylor Navas.

    Solari has decisions to make regarding his squad over the next month. Now that he’s no longer interim manager, he can afford to be ruthless – and he may have to be if his spell as permanent manager is to last long enough for the former Madrid player to have an impact.

    A defensive injury crisis means for now, Ramos’ position is safe, though Courtois may not be. Further up the pitch, hard calls need to be taken. Modric – Ballon d’Or favourite though he might be – and Kroos aren’t playing at the all-conquering level of two years ago.

    Dropping them might provoke a response from the players themselves, while Solari can see what Dani Ceballos – who himself admittedly had a poor outing on Saturday – and Marcos Llorente are capable of given a longer run in the side.

    And something has to change up front. Vinicius clearly did enough to impress Solari during their time together for Madrid’s Castilla side, because the young Brazilian is getting more chances with the first team than he did under previous manager Julen Lopetegui.

    With Asensio, Benzema, and Bale all misfiring, the front three is in dire need of rejuvenation. A starting berth for Vinicius, and a recall for Isco, are in order.

    One thing is for certain. Despite making the best start ever for a Madrid manager, Solari’s honeymoon period is over. Saturday was a rude awakening – now it’s time to see how the manager reacts.

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