Real Madrid are the biggest club in the world… so why can’t they find a coach?

At a loss | Real Madrid president Florentino Perez
Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images
Ben Hayward1 November 2018

"Nobody says ‘no’ to Real Madrid". That was the phrase put to Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino in a press conference in Barcelona by a British broadcast journalist on June 1, a day after Zinedine Zidane's resignation. Since then, however, almost everybody has said ‘no’.

Pochettino may have said ‘yes’ in the summer, but he had just signed a new five-year contract and Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy answered on his behalf. ‘No’. In the following days, many more coaches followed suit with a similar reply.

Joachim Low has long been admired by Florentino Perez, yet the Germany coach was busy at that time preparing the defence of the World Cup title he won with the Mannschaft in 2014. He quickly ruled himself out.

Jurgen Klopp has spoken in length about Liverpool and his love for the project at Anfield; about how he identifies with the city and the club. The 51-year-old would look out of place at an institution like Real. Culturally and ideologically, he seeks something different and Madrid were told it was impossible.

Massimiliano Allegri declared himself happy at Juventus, probably aware at that point that he would be more likely to coach Cristiano Ronaldo in Turin than in Madrid. And in any case, why would he leave the stability of the Italian champions for the uncertainty of Real?

In Pictures | The coaches who have turned down Real Madrid

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Julian Nagelsmann was another coach contacted by Madrid, but said he thought the opportunity had come too early in his career. Still only 30 years old at that time, he later admitted he hoped that one day he could have such a chance. But the timing was not right.

All of that probably explains the pained expression on Florentino’s face as he sat beside Zidane and listened to the Frenchman give his reasons for walking away on May 31 (below). Perez is, after all, the man who does the hiring his firing. He did not look happy with his coach choosing the moment and, worse still, there was a resigned look that seemed to say: 'and now what?'

Photo: AFP/Getty Images/Pierre-Philippe Marcou
AFP/Getty Images/Pierre-Philippe Marcou

After five turned the role down, Julen Lopetegui said ‘yes’. The Spain coach was presumably aware that such an opportunity would likely not come around again and he accepted, though he should not have and especially in such circumstances. The announcement of his Madrid move saw him lose the chance of leading out La Roja at a World Cup and, just 14 games into his Real tenure, he has gone.

Lopetegui was in some ways ideal for this team. Madrid had been so reliant upon Ronaldo in previous seasons and often only put their foot firmly on the accelerator for the big games at the end of the season. He attempted to change that culture, but his players did not really respond. After a superb showing against AS Roma in the Champions League in September, they neither pressed nor impressed like that again and on Monday, he was sacked.

Antonio Conte was lined up as his successor. However, Sergio Ramos said after Sunday’s loss to Barcelona: “Respect is earned, not imposed. You know the coaches who have won here. Sometimes management of the dressing room is more important than tactical knowledge.” On hearing he would not be well received, the former Chelsea boss duly changed his mind.

Even Michael Laudrup has reportedly turned down the job. "Bearing in mind how things have been going at Madrid, now's not the right moment. He doesn't want to return to the club regardless of the circumstances,” his agent is quoted as saying by AS.

So the world’s biggest and most successful club finds itself in a strange situation. Because although it seems from the outside like a job that everyone wants, the reality is somewhat different.

Lopetegui lasted 14 games. Rafa Benitez a little longer, but not much. Zidane won three Champions League titles in a row and still feared the axe from Florentino in his final season. And who could follow that anyway – especially without Ronaldo?

Perez would like Jose Mourinho to return, but the Portuguese ended on bad terms with many of the players and is also under contract at Manchester United. And would he, like Conte, not meet opposition in the dressing room?

Arsene Wenger would seem like the type of coach who has done well with Real in recent times, a father figure who is an excellent man manager – someone in the style of Vicente del Bosque, Carlo Ancelotti or Zidane (between the three the winners of the club's last six Champions League crowns). Perez, however, regards the Frenchman as a manager on the way down.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images/Marco Bertorello
AFP/Getty Images/Marco Bertorello

In the post-Cristiano era, Real Madrid must decide exactly what they want to be. The philosophy of the club has been to buy the game’s greatest players and mix those with Spanish talent, yet there has been no defined playing style, nor innovative tactical trends emerging at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The only real philosophy has been to win and while there is nothing wrong with that, it is also more difficult without a player who contributed 450 goals over nine seasons. Now, what is needed is a project, a style, an identity. But that may mean upsetting the dressing room.

Nothing is simple at Real and any new coach knows they must not only be able to convince the players, but be given time to work as well. And neither of those are guaranteed in Madrid, where a reputation can be ruined in a short space of time.

The top coaches are wary of the egos in the dressing room, conscious of the pressure to deliver results straight away, aware that following Zidane is an almost impossible act to follow and concerned that there is no goalscorer after Ronaldo left and was not replaced. It may be a dream job, but circumstances make it anything but ideal at the moment.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images
AFP/Getty Images

One man who would say ‘yes’ is Santiago Solari (above). The Argentine described it as “a beautiful job” on Tuesday and although he is in charge only on an interim basis, he may just have to stay longer. Because no one else seems to want it right now.

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