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"We are at his side until death," said Marcelo. Lopetegui is about to launch – he may not be doing Clasico on Sunday – but there is a feeling that this "mega crisis", as the Mundo Deportivo de Barcelona calls it, has been going on for a long time.
In July, a few days after Cristiano Ronaldo's departure for Juventus, Perez defended his recruitment strategy by saying: "Madrid is strengthening its search for young players who will become the next big players in this sport".
By the end of the summer, they had signed Vinicius, Flamengo's 18-year-old striker, Alvaro Odriozola, 22-year-old Real Sociedad back, and Mariano Diaz, returned after a satisfying season. with Lyon.
Only Thibaut Courtois could be considered a star and he joined a club that already had the goalkeeper of the UEFA season.
– A spotlight on the cracks keep the cash full in anticipation of a new direction for Neymar next summer. This could also explain why a move for Eden Hazard has never been pushed.
Meanwhile, Zinedine Zidane and, at present, Lopetegui, have been accused of having lined the cracks.
Zidane does this spectacularly well in Europe, but if Michael Oliver had not done well to give Juventus a 98th-minute penalty, Madrid would have been eliminated in the second half. the last 16 games. In La Liga, they finished 17 points behind Barcelona.
Three consecutive titles in the Champions League are not a coincidence, just as two interventions by the video badistant referee are not the only reason for the loss of Madrid at home against Levante for the first time in 11 years .
Defensive mistakes, finishing panic and heavy construction all detracted from Lopetegui's reputation, which compounded the situation by leaving Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema on the bench.
Both men had fitness problems during the international break, but were excellent in the second half. At that moment, it was too late.
"I believe more than ever in this team," said Lopetegui.
Only one of the last six Madrid coaches to chair three consecutive defeats has not been sacked thereafter. It was Bernd Schuster, whose team had held up after the title win in 2008.
Marca's title was "This Madrid is in ruins" Sunday, with the emphasis on "this", while El Pais claims that Perez has already decided to change after Clasico next weekend at Camp Nou.
Santiago Solari, coach of Castilla, Real Madrid team B, could badume the charge in the short term, but the problem of Perez to hire a suitable successor last summer has not been resolved four months later.
Mauricio Pochettino, Jurgen Klopp and Max Allegri would be almost impossible to sign mid-season, while Joachim Low is still attached to Germany.
Antonio Conte is unemployed, but the Italian's playing style poses a problem. Arsene Wenger would be fascinating but risky.
In order for Lopetegui to cancel the search, Viktoria Plzen must surely win at home in the middle of the week.
Avoiding the defeat against Barcelona, who will be without injured Lionel Messi, could buy him a trio of more modest matches against Melilla in Copa del Rey, Real Valladolid in the league and Plzen in the Champions League. Win them, and the prospects could be more optimistic.
For the moment, however, it seems very far away. The period of austerity of Perez is back at home.
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