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When Real Madrid fired Rafa Benitez and appointed Zinedine Zidane as manager, many eyebrows were raised. Despite having a great player CV, Zidane's coaching experience is definitely questionable. Can he truly manage the egos that lie within the dressing room in Madrid? Another question also comes to mind, must all coaches abandon their respective philosophies due to the overwhelming influence of the club president? Manuel Pellegrini, Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti and Rafa Benitez have all evidently fallen due to this.
Om Arvind here at Managing Madrid wrote, "At the beginning of the season [Rafa] Benitez seemed determined to stamp his authority on the team. He wanted a 4-2-3-1 with Bale as a shadow striker, he wanted defensive solidity...But now, Benitez just looks confused. He plays a 4-3-3 with James, Kroos, and Modric in midfield, something that clearly goes against his philosophy as a coach."
Instead of persisting with his own ideas, using Bale as a false nine of sorts, Benitez has fallen victim to the political horrors at Madrid. The president insists that his marquee signings must be fielded, and the coach cannot effectively get his style of play across. Players are unjustifiably played or benched regardless of performance, just as we saw with Gareth Bale last season.
Casemiro has undeniably been one of the star performers for Madrid this season. He brings in solidity to the midfield, and lessens the defensive load of both Modric and Kroos. Ideally, Rafa would have had Casemiro play every game, but because he had to field specific players due to the politics behind the scenes, his ideas were not communicated correctly, and the team suffers as a whole.
As a result, he holds the responsibility in the public eye, and is sacrificed for another victim/manager to come in. With all the history we have seen, Carlo Ancelotti being sacked despite his great rapport with the squad, the trend of coaches nearly abandoning their philosophies will always be apparent with Perez in total control of the club.