Antonio Conte looked set to succeed Julen Lopetegui as coach but Santiago Solari has quickly won over the president and the players at the Bernabeu
Whether by design or good fortune, the appointment of Santiago Solari as Real Madrid's permanent coach may well turn out to be a case of perfect timing for the current European champions.
It was probably only ever going to be a matter of time before the Argentine found himself in the Santiago Bernabeu hot seat. But when Solari was first named as interim manager following the departure of Julen Lopetegui, it was thought he was just keeping the seat warm for Antonio Conte.