10 Things You Should Know About Real Madrid’s New Coach, Santiago Solari

Real Madrid sacked their coach Julen Lopetegui on Monday evening after several poor outings of the team this season.

The decision to kick Lopetegui out was taken after the team’s humiliation in the hands of rivals, Barcelona at the weekend. Barcelona ran home 5-1 winners in the El-Clasico encounter.

Real Madrid have appointed Santiago Solari to take charge in the interim but who’s Solari?

Here are some facts you should know about him:

1. Santiago Hernán Solari Poggio was born on 7 October 1976.

2. He was an Argentine retired footballer.

3. Solari played youth football for Newell’s Old Boys and local Renato Cesarini, after returning from the United States where he attended Richard Stockton College in New Jersey. He joined Club Atlético River Plate midway through the 1995–96 season, making his Primera División debut on 12 May.

4. Solari moved to Spain late into the 1999 January transfer window, signing with Atlético Madrid.

5. He moved across the city to join Real Madrid. After a poor first season, he became a regular for the Merengues, albeit as a substitute; in the final of the 2001–02 UEFA Champions League, in which he played the full 90 minutes, he was involved in the play that led to Zinedine Zidane’s wonder strike against Bayer 04 Leverkusen, in an eventual 2–1 win.

6. Solari signed a three-year contract with Inter Milan in the summer of 2005 for €6 million, being sparingly used during his three-year stint (maximum 21 games in his second season) but winning three consecutive Serie A titles to add to his trophy cabinet.

7. The Argentine won 11 caps for Argentina, during five years. He was not selected for any major international tournaments, however.

8. Solari started working as a manager in 2013, first being in charge of Real Madrid’s youths. Ahead of the 2016–17 season, he was appointed at the reserves who competed in Segunda División B.

9. On 29 October 2018, Solari was named caretaker manager of the first team after the dismissal of Julen Lopetegui. He assumed this role the next day.

10. A dynamic and versatile winger, with excellent technical ability, Solari was mainly known for his dribbling skills, although he was also an accurate passer and was capable of striking the ball from distance with both feet.

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– Daily Trust