The big differences between Solari and Lopetegui

Solari made his managerial debut at the Bernabeu on the weekend and got off to a winning start. It was not the best of games, however above all Real Madrid managed to get all three points and back to winning ways. The Argentine differed with Lopetegui's approach, believing that high levels of possession is not essential. 

Here is possibly the most noticeable difference between one coach and another. Against Valladolid, Madrid recorded the lowest possession figure whilst playing at the Bernabeu with 58.1%. Until the clash against Valladolid​, the lowest poses sion stat was in Madrid-Espanyol, in which the white team had almost 65% of the possession.

If you analyse the overall season in the league championship, this 58.1% is the second lowest record of the year, only surpassed by that recorded during El Clasico at Camp Nou. There, Madrid lost the battle for the ball, although during the Lopetegui era they did dominate games, with almost 80% possession recorded against Getafe.

But there are more differences. There was also the confidence that Solari gave to the club's academy graduates. One of them, Odriozola, who played well against Valladolid after being out of the eleven despite Carvajal's loss. Lopetegui added competition to Lucas Vazquez and the winger showed that his position is secured.

Solari played Vinicius, where he only accumulated a mere 20 minutes under the old boss. Also Reguilón, one of the best of the match. Solari has faith in his youth. However, he knows them better than anyone from his time in Castilla. The embrace between Vinicius and the Argentinian said it all.

Moreover, Solari's pulse did not tremble when it came to sending the so called big names to the bench. Bale, Asensio and Casemiro left the field early after the trio performed badly. And, as if that wasn't enough, luck was again on Madrid's side, as was proved by the two crossbars that Valladolid had in the second half.