TVC E, SPORTS – Rafa Benitez was ‘a dead man walking’ at Real Madrid after being their fourth choice to take over last summer, according to former club president Ramon Calderon.
He insists Madrid approached then-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, Germany’s World Cup-winning coach Joachim Low, and Jurgen Klopp. But all three turned down the offer.
Benitez lasted just seven months at the Bernabeu before a 2-2 draw with Valencia prompted his sacking in January.
According to Calderon, Benitez was never wanted by the Madrid hierachy, who only turned to him in desperation.
‘Benitez was a coach who was already a dead man walking from the start at Real Madrid,’ he explained in an interview with Omnisport.
‘That’s because he was not the chosen one, he was the fourth option. They tried to bring [Jose] Mourinho but the Portuguese did not want to go back.
‘After that they tried to get Joachim Low, and he didn’t want to come either. The third person they tried to get was [Jurgen] Klopp, and the German also rejected.
The Spaniard was replaced by club legend Zinedine Zidane.
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