After a rather curious scandal, the Spanish Football Federation, led by Luis Rubiales, announced on June 13 the resignation of Julen Lopetegi, and Real Madrid hired him as a football coach for the club on the 14th of the same month - in the midst of the World Cup in Russia .
Good start
Naturally, many fans of Real Madrid have a question: "What kind of merit did he take to train the best club on the planet in recent years?" With the previous mentor, Zinedine Zidane, absolutely everything is clear - the world champion, European champion, vice world champion and further on the list. But what exactly the bosses of the royal club discerned in the past once “Castile”, but still not playing for the main composition of the club player - the question is complex.
However, at the moment, Real Madrid is in second place in the Championship of Spain, following Barcelona, ​​which cannot but speak of Julen Lopetegi's football as not being effective enough. Yes, at the very beginning of the season there was a loss to Madrid “Atletico” in the finals of the European Super Cup. But half of the club’s composition rested from the World Cup, so this result did not affect the reputation of the young specialist.
Tactics Lopetegui
This is not to say that he does not interfere at all in the team’s gameplay, as Carlo Ancelotti once did, influencing the players only morally. On the contrary, in training Lopetegi behaves quite actively. But to note that he brought something extraordinary to the game is also impossible.
And on the other hand, why radically restructure the game of the team when it contains superstars playing with each other for many years who already know what they need to do on the field? The latest Real Madrid games show that a certain balance between the coach and the players is more or less found.
Football players respond positively to the work of Julen in interviews at press conferences. They understand the style of his game, based on the 4-2-3-1 scheme and acutely attacking 4-3-3. Cross-Casemiro ligament allows you to optimally distribute the load in the center of the field. Both cope with their tasks at the highest level. The first player is responsible for delivering the ball to the attack, the second must return it in case of loss and establish interaction between the central defenders.
The third playmaker at Lopetega is either Modric or Isco. Everyone’s task is to strengthen the center of attack, aggravate the situation near the opponent’s goal in every possible way, drag the ball as close to the penalty area as possible, loading the central defenders. Of course, one pressure in the center of the field to a team that prefers to dominate throughout the playing time is indispensable. With Julen Lopetegui, this problem is solved very simply. Extreme defenders Marcelo and Carvajal are always ready to add pressure in attacking actions on the ribbon itself, both in half of the opponent’s field and in the middle zone. This approach to the use of flanks allows extreme midfielders to move closer to the center and create a danger in the immediate vicinity of the enemy’s goal.
Coaching career
To date, the most striking segment in the career of Julen Lopetegi is the period from 2010 to 2014, when he worked as the head coach of the youth team of Spain. Twice he managed to become the winner of the European Championship with a team under 19 years old and once with players no older than 21 years old.
In working with clubs, everything turned out not so well. After the player’s career ended in 2002, Lopetegi became the head coach of “Rayo Valecano” in 2003, but finished his teamwork a year later. May 6, 2014 signed a contract with the Portuguese “Port”, where he was also fired due to poor performance in the local championship and in the European arena. There he worked only 2 years.
Prospects for Real Madrid
The lack of high-profile victories and widespread popularity among football fans is not a negative factor for Julen Lopetegui. The “Real” coach has a great chance to make himself known to the whole world if he meets the expectations of the club’s top management.
Winning the Champions League and Example are always two priority goals for the royal club, and having completed at least one of them, the Spanish specialist will be able to work at least two seasons without the threat of dismissal. Moreover, Real Madrid is the only team in the world to win the Champions League Cup three times in a row, it is unlikely that the fans will be very upset if they fail to win the title again. But the victory in the current draw of the Spanish Championship will unambiguously write the name of the new coach in the history of the club and world football in general.