Santiago Solari is the new favourite to become the next permanent manager of Real Madrid following Julen Lopetegui’s sacking.
Former Chelsea manager Antonio Conte had been expected to take the reins at the Santiago Bernabeu following Real’s miserable start to the season which culminated in a 5-1 defeat to Barcelona on Sunday.
But the Italian’s proposed arrival in the Spanish capital could now be off. Conte was the bookies’ favourite for the role last week but has now slipped to 5/2 behind Solari, who is priced at 4/7, according to Betfair.
Solari was named Real’s interim head coach on Monday evening. Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino, pursued by the Spanish giants in the summer following Zinedine Zidane’s shock departure in June, remains in the frame at 3/1.
Since dismissing the prospect of a return to the Bernabeu, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho’s odds have fallen to 25/1.
Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri and under-fire Germany head coach Joachim Low were also names pursued in the summer and are priced at 66/1 and 55/1 respectively. According to Marca, La Liga regulation states interim managers can only be in charge for a maximum of two weeks, leaving Real with a small window to make their final decision.
Real Madrid next manager odds via Betfair:
Santiago Solari: 4/7
Antonio Conte: 5/2
Mauricio Pochettino: 3/1
Roberto Martinez: 7/1
Arsene Wenger: 9/1
Michael Laudrup: 25/1
Jose Mourinho: 25/1
But if you look around the Premier League and Europe, there is no obvious successor in waiting. That is because the job Pochettino has done, and his standing at Spurs, is unique — certainly in the modern era.
Chairman Daniel Levy used to go through managers like Zsa Zsa Gabor did husbands. Now he has finally found football love and settled down with his soul-mate, Poch.
The Argentine is Levy’s longest-serving gaffer at Tottenham after switching from Southampton in May 2014 to join the North Londoners.