Ex-Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui is convinced his players were committed, despite bad results leading to his early exit.
The 52-year-old was dismissed as Spain manager on the eve of last summer’s World Cup in Russia, after having agreed to take charge of Los Blancos following the conclusion of the tournament. However, his spell in charge at the Bernabeu was a disaster, as a Ronaldo-free Real failed to keep up with Barcelona at the top of the table.
On the back of a five-game winless streak in the league, Real parted company with Lopetegui, who was then replaced by Santiago Solari, before Zinedine Zidane agreed to return later in the season.
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Real’s players have been heavily criticised this season for not trying hard enough for the shirt but Lopetegui refutes those claims, saying they were committed while he was at the club. “We started playing very well and completed some brilliant games, but then we had three consecutive weeks when we just were very unlucky in front of the goal in games where we were the best team,” he said. “This can happen to every single team and we felt like we still had time to turn things around because the players were committed and they were willing to give their all.”
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