It’s been a tough few months for Julen Lopetegui.
After being sacked from his position in charge of the Spanish national team on the eve of the World Cup – what he called “the saddest day of my life” – Lopetegui is now on the brink of being fired from his “dream job,” according to numerous Spanish media reports.
Following Saturday’s shock 2-1 home defeat to Levante, in which Real Madrid broke the club record for the longest goal drought in its history (481 minutes), reports in Spain suggest Los Blancos boss Florentino Perez is already searching for Lopetegui’s successor.
The Levante loss was Real’s third league defeat in nine games, leaving the Madrid club seventh in the La Liga table and four points behind leaders Barcelona.
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Newspaper SPORT suggests Real Madrid president Perez is looking to fire Lopetegui this week after only 12 games in charge, with Antonio Conte, Laurent Blanc and Santiago Solari the leading candidates for the job.
Solari, a Champions League winner with Real in 2002, knows the club well and has been in charge of Real Madrid’s B team since 2016.
Diario AS reports that Lopetegui will remain in charge for now – at least until next weekend’s El Clasico against Barcelona – though Real are already looking at Guti, another former player, as a potential replacement.
The Argentine, currently the assistant manager at Turkish club Besiktas, was in charge of Real Madrid’s Under-19 side until June of this year and played for the club more than 400 times in 15 years as a player at the Bernabeu.
With Los Blancos currently on a five-game winless run in all competitions, radio Cadena COPE journalist Manolo Lama also reports that Swedish star Zlatan Ibrahimovic is being considered as a solution to Real’s woes in front of goal.
The LA Galaxy star has been a hit in MLS since moving from Manchester United in March and was already rumored to be rejoining former club Inter Milan.
Real has been struggling to find the back of the net since Cristiano Ronaldo’s summer departure to Juventus, with none of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale or Mariano Diaz able to step up and fill the void.
Atlanta United’s double blow
Meanwhile MLS side Atlanta United, which on Sunday qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League for the first time, looks set to lose star player Miguel Almiron and coach Tata Martino.
Paraguay international Almiron is reported to be nearing a transfer to Premier League club Arsenal, while Martino could take the vacant managerial post at the Mexico national team.
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In an attempt to soften the blow, Atlanta already has a contingency plan in place should the pair depart.
According to Argentine channel TNT Sports, the “Five Stripes” has paid River Plate the €15 million ($17.3M) release clause in Gonzalo “Pity” Martínez’s contract.
The 25-year-old forward will make the move when the transfer window reopens on January 1.
Atlanta is looking to River Plate’s bitter rivals, Boca Juniors, for Martino’s replacement should the former Barcelona coach decide to leave for Mexico.
AS Argentina reports that Martino has already agreed a deal with Mexico until 2022, with Boca coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto the favorite to succeed him.
The timing of Schelotto’s departure depends on the outcome of Boca’s Copa Libertadores – South America’s biggest club competition – semifinal against Palmeiras.
Should the Buenos Aires club reach the final, played over two legs on November 7 and 28, then Atlanta could be made to wait before securing his services.