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Attendance: 78,921

La Liga | Gameweek 26

Mar 2, 2019 at 7.45pm UK

Real Madrid
0-1
Barcelona

FT(HT: 0-1)

Rakitic (26')

Santiago Solari future 'depends on El Clasico result'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 01 March 2019

Santiago Solari is reportedly given one more match, Saturday's visit of Barcelona in La Liga, to persuade Real Madrid chiefs to stick with him.

Real Madrid chiefs will reportedly decide by the end of the week whether they intend to stick with Santiago Solari or bring in a new manager.

The 42-year-old was brought in on the back of Julen Lopetegui's sacking at the end of October, initially on a caretaker basis before being awarded a three-and-a-half-year deal two weeks later.

Real had little choice but to give Solari the job as Spanish rules prevent an interim coach from staying in charge for longer than two weeks, and other options - Mauricio Pochettino among them - were not available on such short notice.

Solari has endured a mixed four months at the Bernabeu, suffering shock defeats to Eibar, Real Sociedad, Leganes and Girona in La Liga, while also losing to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League, but he has ultimately improved Real's league standing.

Marca suggests that Los Blancos' semi-final exit from the Copa del Rey at the hands of Barcelona has left Solari's future in the balance, giving him just one more game - Saturday's visit of Barca in La Liga - to persuade Florentino Perez that he is the right man to take the club forward.

The Argentine is said to have been given the full backing of Perez to do things his own way for now, which includes leaving Isco out of his squad and overlooking the likes of Marcelo, Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio.