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Real’s Ramos unlikely to stay despite successful spell
Quite a few sceptical eyebrows were raised when Real Madrid gave Bernd Schuster the boot back in December and brought in Juande Ramos.
After an impressive spell at Sevilla, Ramos had faltered badly at Tottenham and it seemed the Real board were taking a big gamble in bringing him back to Spain with a contract until the end of the season.
When the affable La Manchan took charge, 100 days ago today, the champions had lost two on the trot and were down in fifth place, nine points behind leaders Barcelona.
Although his first league match ended in a 2-0 defeat at the Nou Camp, Real subsequently went on a 10-match winning run that ended on March 7 with the 1-1 home draw to city rivals Atletico.
Barca’s recent wobble has seen their lead cut from 12 points to six and Real fans are not giving up hope of a third consecutive Primera Liga title.
So has Ramos done enough to convince the men in suits that he should stay on next season?
Real fans glad to see back of Schuster, welcome Ramos
Chatting with Real Madrid fans outside the Bernabeu ahead of their Champions League match against Zenit St Petersburg on Wednesday, the overwhelming attitude expressed was one of relief that the club was rid of Bernd Schuster.
Tuesday’s surprise appointment of Juande Ramos to replace the moody German has raised hopes that a change in management will give the team a boost and help them get their faltering season back on track.
Jose-Maria, an architectural engineer and lifelong Real supporter from Albacete, said Schuster’s claim at the weekend that it was impossible to win at Barcelona was unacceptable and he had to go.
“You just can’t say things like that and expect to get away with it, it was very damaging,” he said, beating his gloved hands together against the cold.
With an eye on Saturday’s Primera Liga match against leaders and arch rivals Barcelona, he said there was not much former Sevilla and Tottenham Hotspur coach Ramos could do in less than a week but his arrival would help change the mentality of the players for the better.
“Schuster was too serious. He was not relaxed with the players or the press and he had no empathy with the fans,” he said. “The players did not defend him and they accepted that it was time for a change.”
Schuster has wanted to leave for some wees now, if his public statements are anything to go by, but has not had the courage to just come out and say so (or perhaps he had his eye on a nice big payoff).
On the other hand, Calderón really couldn’t get rid of him until he had the AGM out of the way, no matter what Mijatovic says about its being his decision.
http://allinwhite.blogspot.com
Ramos replaces Schuster at Real – your views
The Bernabeu axe has fallen again with Bernd Schuster sacked as Real Madrid coach and Juande Ramos coming in to replace him.
The writing had been on the wall for the German after Real’s sticky start to the season. Sunday’s 4-3 home defeat by Sevilla was compounded by Schuster’s comments that winning would be impossible in next weekend’s match at Barcelona.
Ramos must think he is in dreamland having landed one of club soccer’s top jobs only a few weeks after being chased out of struggling Tottenham Hotspur.
What do you make of Real’s move? Did they have any choice or have they again acted rashly? And what about Ramos? Things fell apart at Spurs but he was previously very successful with Sevilla.
Madrid is passing through tough period which do come.arsenal ve had several of this season but ve not axed wenger,so i believe calderon gat it all wrong.
Impossible is nothing, or so Bernd Schuster hopes
Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster is all over the Spanish-speaking web, saying, “It’s impossible to win at the Nou Camp.”
Is he right? I guess it must feel that way after Barca’s 4-0 win over Valencia but I don’t suppose Schuster really believes it.
Schuster is engaging in a little light psychology ahead of the weekend’s match against Barcelona, setting the bar as low as possible in the hope of his team clearing it beautifully.
“The game against Barcelona is the one that worries me least,” Schuster said after Real’s latest defeat, 4-3 at home to Sevilla, left them nine points behind the leaders. “The team can put in a decent performance there, but you can’t talk about doing any more.”
It’s the sort of comment you expect from a spin doctor (or you do if you’ve watched a lot of The West Wing). If Real Madrid come away from Camp Nou with a draw, it will feel like a victory. If they are beaten, but not overwhelmed, it won’t seem like such a bad result.
The problem is, this is Real Madrid we’re talking about, club of the century, etc, etc, and a lot of influential people at the club don’t like it when coaches speak like that.
It will take more than Huntelaar to save Real’s season
Real Madrid appear to need more than the couple of ‘youngsters with a future’ their president Ramon Calderon has promised for January if their season is not going to drift away from them.
Ajax striker Klaas Jan Huntelaar will be the first new arrival after Real came to an agreement to sign him, but he will not have been impressed with Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Getafe.
Real, already out of the King’s Cup, put on probably their worst display of the campaign and coach Bernd Schuster hit the nail on the head when he said the scoreline flattered them. They are now six points off leaders Barcelona.
A lengthy injury list is one of their problems.
Ruud van Nistelrooy has been ruled out for the season and fellow forward Gonzalo Higuain was missing against Getafe. Midfielders Ruben de la Red, Arjen Robben and Mahamadou Diarra, and defenders Gabriel Heinze and Fabio Cannavaro were also laid low.
Wesley Sneijder, Miguel Torres and Pepe picked up new injuries on Saturday while the fit players showed a worrying lack of fight. (more…)
The basic problem for Real is the lousy defense which should be as soon as possible reconstructed. Heinze is a joke, Cannavaro has his heydays far behind, Pepe has not been worth of the investment at all. All we need is Maicon, Zambrotta and Cordoba.
One major problem with Real Madrid is patience, they are short of it, give Ramos a chance.