Zidane replaces Benítez at Real Madrid
Tuesday, January 5, 2016 @ 11:34 AM
Rafael Benítez has been sacked as manager of Real Madrid, just seven months into a three-year contract at the Bernabéu. The 55-year-old Spaniard has been replaced by Real's B team coach and ex-Real player Zinedine Zidane.
Benítez’s Real Madrid future was decided at an emergency board meeting on Monday. His final act was overseeing Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Gary Neville’s Valencia at the Mestalla, in which Real were reduced to 10 men and twice threw away a lead, leaving them in third place in La Liga, four points behind the leaders Atlético Madrid.
In his 25 games into a three-year contract, Benítez led Real to 17 wins, five draws and three defeats at a win percentage of 68, the seventh-highest in the club's history. He took over from Carlo Ancelotti in the summer of 2015 after the Italian was sacked in May, and the former Valencia and Liverpool boss went unbeaten in his first 14 games in charge.
He also guided Real to the knockout stages of the Champions League, dropping just two points as they topped Group A. But Benítez's low point was Real's humiliating 4-0 defeat by rivals Barcelona in November's Clásico at the Bernabeu, adding to league defeats at Sevilla and Villarreal. Further disappointment was to follow when Real were thrown out of the Copa del Rey for fielding ineligible player Denis Cheryshev against Cadiz last month.
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