La Liga preview: Sevilla seek to heap more pressure on Real Madrid manager Santiago Solari

Argentine's fine start, which included success at the Fifa Club World Cup, has made way for a poor run of results

Santiago Solari is under increasing pressure as Real Madrid manager. Reuters

The tide of opinion is turning against Real Madrid manager Santiago Solari in the wake of haphazard results, timid performances and baffling team selections less than three months after he succeeded Julen Lopetegui.

The former Real Madrid and Argentina midfielder faces the stiffest test of his tenure on Saturday at third-placed Sevilla, who thrashed the European champions 3-0 in September, spelling the beginning of the end for Lopetegui.

Sevilla are locked on 33 points with Real, who are fourth in the Primera Liga standings and 10 points off leaders Barcelona, who host Leganes on Sunday.

Second-placed Atletico Madrid, reeling from a Copa del Rey exit to Girona on Wednesday, visit basement club Huesca after Real's match on Saturday.

___________

Read more:

Nick Blackman: Sporting Gijon's 'Batman' looking to be a superhero against Valencia

Pep Guardiola: Real Madrid's Brahim Diaz acquisition good sign for Man City academy

___________

While Solari initially had encouraging results following Lopetegui's ill-fated reign, winning 11 out of 13 games and lifting the Fifa Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi in December, his suitability for the job has been thrown into doubt following a dire start to 2019.

Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw at struggling Villarreal in their first game of the new year, then lost 2-0 at home to Real Sociedad and scraped a 2-1 win at Real Betis, snatching victory with a late free kick after having only 26 per cent possession.

The Argentine, who like Zinedine Zidane was promoted from coach of Real's reserve side, lacks the charisma and stardust of his former teammate, who led Madrid to a remarkable three successive Uefa Champions League titles before resigning.

He also appears to lack the coaching pedigree of Lopetegui, who oversaw some impressive Madrid displays but had horrendous luck in his short time at the club, during which he lost his undisputed star player and main source of goals, Cristiano Ronaldo, to Juventus.

______________________________

Real Madrid's managerial conveyor belt

Guus Hiddink. July 1998 - February 1999. AFP

John Toshack. February 1999 - November 1999. Getty Images

Vicente Del Bosque. November 1999 - June 2003. Getty Images

Carlos Quieroz. June 2003 - May 2004. Getty Images

Jose Antonio Camacho. May 2004 - September 2004. Getty Images

Mariano Garcia Remon. September 2004 - December 2004. AFP

Wanderlei Luxemburgo. December 2004 - December 2005. Getty Images

Juan Ramon Lopez Caro. December 2005 - June 2006. Getty Images

Fabio Capello. July 2006 - June 2007. Getty Images

Bernd Schuster. July 2007 - December 2008. Getty Images

Juande Ramos. December 2008 - June 2009. Getty Images

Manuel Pellegrini. June 2009 - May 2010. Getty Images

Jose Mourinho. May 2010 - June 2013. Getty Images

Carlo Ancelotti. June 2013 - May 2015. Getty Images

Rafael Benitez. June 2015 - January 2016. Getty Images

Zinedine Zidane. January 2016 - May 2018. Getty Images

Julen Lopetegui. June 2018 - October 2018. Getty Images

Santiago Solari. October 2018 - Present. Getty Images

______________________________

Solari's apparent disregard for midfielder Isco, one of the team's most popular players but who has failed to start a league game under Solari, has not helped the Argentine's cause.

His declaration that "draws should not be underestimated" after throwing away the lead against Villarreal was also met with consternation in the Spanish media, with many commentators saying the remarks were not befitting of a Madrid manager.

Real may have reached the Copa del Rey quarter-finals by seeing off Leganes 3-1 on aggregate, but Wednesday's limp 1-0 second-leg defeat by their Madrid neighbours has led to further criticism of Solari.

"Unsustainable mediocrity" is how Spanish newspaper Marca described Madrid's current state, adding that many of the club's fans have written off the season completely, a theory supported by falling attendances at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The visit of Sevilla should motivate many of the fans who have stayed away in recent weeks to return for a game which could have a big say in determining whether Solari stays in charge beyond this season.