As rumours swarm that Julen Lopetegui's brief spell in charge of Real Madrid may be coming to a premature end, one man is being consistently presented as a potential replacement. Although it would appear that such an appointment would only be temporary, many are left asking; who is Santiago Solari?
Marca suggesting (though not outright committing to saying it is done) that Lopetegui could go in the next few hours. Santiago Solari internal candidate for now/interim https://t.co/GE5gIIsYc5
— Ed Malyon (@eaamalyon) October 21, 2018
Who is Santiago Solari?
Basic Details:
Santiago Solari was born in 1976 in the Argentine city of Rosario; birthplace of Lionel Messi, among others.
Playing Career - River Plate (1996-98), Atletico Madrid (1999-00), Real Madrid (2000-05), Inter Milan (2005-08), San Lorenzo (2008-09), Atlante (2009-10) & Penarol (2010-11).
After making the move to Europe as a 23-year-old to join Atletico Madrid, Santiago Solari enjoyed a pretty impressive playing career.
Bringing his stay with the red-and-white side of Madrid to an end pretty quickly, Solari won almost all there was to be gained during his five-year stint with Real Madrid. 2 La Liga titles, along with winners medals in the Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup, the Argentine made over 200 appearances for the club.
Leaving to join Inter Milan in Serie A, his stay coincided with the relegation of Juventus during the Calciopoli scandal. As a result, Solari won three league titles during his stay in Italy, along with a 2005-06 win in the Coppa Italia.
Seeing out the rest of his career away from European football, Solari's international career spanned over 6 years; although he only ever made 11 appearances for Argentina.
Coaching Career - Real Madrid Castilla (2016-)
Without any first-hand experience of football management, Santiago Solari has been overseeing things with Real Madrid's second team since Zinedine Zidane left the role to take charge of the seniors in similar circumstances.
Should he find himself taking the reins at Real Madrid for any period of time, Solari will only hope that he can have as successful a time of it as the French man managed.
So, there you have it. Some details to answer that burning question of who is Santiago Solari?
