Why Real Madrid must fire David Aznar as soon as possible

Another weekend, another embarrassing result. Expectations were high for Real Madrid Femenino coming into the 2021-2022 season, as the club qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time and then added a host of highly talented players in the summer transfer window.

Caroline Moller, Claudia Zornoza, Nahikari Garcia, Athenea del Castillo, Esther Gonzalez, and Lucia Rodriguez are notable names who joined a team that already included world-class talents like Misa Rodriguez, Ivana Andres, Marta Cardona, and Kosovare Asllani.

What we have seen so far in the 2021-2022 season from Real Madrid in Primera Iberdrola is far from world-class. And there is only one person to blame. An unqualified man named David Aznar, who only survived the 2020-2021 season as manager because of the individual greatness of the players in the squad.

Aznar was never capable of managing Real Madrid Femenino. Whereas this club is stocked with proud and talented players, their manager is an inept individual with no accomplishments nor adaptability. No close follower of Las Blancas had confidence in Aznar, who can receive no credit for Real’s Champions League-sealing advancement over Manchester City.

David Aznar has been humiliated on a weekly basis

Watch any league game this season, and you will see how Aznar is outclassed by everyone he comes across. Real Madrid have won just one match in the league this season, which was last weekend against Eibar. And a 2-1 win over Eibar is far from convincing.

Las Blancas have lost to Atletico Madrid, Real Sociedad, Sevilla, and Athletic Club. They did not score a single goal in any of these matches, highlighting Aznar’s tactical incompetence. Their only point aside from the win over Eibar was a 1-1 draw with Granadilla Tenerife. Again, hardly inspiring.

After this weekend’s 3-0 loss to Sevilla and their former striker Jessica Martinez, Real Madrid sit 13th in the table with a ghastly -11 goal differential. It is unacceptable for a Madrid team to play this poorly. It is not as if the season is all that young. With seven matches played, we are more than 20 percent through the calendar. And Real are closer to relegation than the Champions League. How can this be tolerated?

That question is rhetorical. It never would be for the men’s team, and therefore the same standard must be applied to the Galacticas. They work so hard and display their excellence. Real Madrid have some of the best players on this planet, capable of beating an established powerhouse in the women’s game like City.

Real Madrid’s players are too good for this nonsense

These women deserve better than to be coached by someone who has no concept of rotations, cannot create tailored gameplans for opponents, and seems to know very little about the most basic strengths and weaknesses of his own team’s players. Why else would he switch center backs and force Ivana Andres to progress the ball on her weaker foot? Why else would he isolate Møller with no help while Athenea is forced to dribble past three people? And what other explanation is there for a never-ending change in midfield and a lineup that fails to progress the ball against any sort of mid-block?

Real Madrid have too much talent to look this bad every weekend. I understand the results are coming in the Champions League, but when PSG come knocking, that wall will surely break down, too. Real are defending with every bit of their might, but they have no ideas in the attack and no cohesion. Defenses just sit back and watch as Real pass aimlessly or lose the ball. The fundamentals are entirely lacking.

You can say Real are hurt by missing Asllani and Cardona. That is true. But that just explains how Aznar was carried by two of the world’s foremost superstars. With a great team but no standout individuals (yet…Athenea, Nahikari, and Esther will truly shine soon enough), Real Madrid flounder due to the directionless management of Aznar.

It is not too soon to fire Aznar. If anything, waiting would make things too late, with just four points in the table after seven matches. Surely, there are many more qualified options around Spain and Europe who can replace Aznar, perhaps even within the club itself. There are so many managers, specifically women, capable of leading this team over Aznar, who has never inspired confidence and has not shown any progress tactically over these seven matches.

We are seeing the same mistakes, the same results, and the same patterns. That should be enough for Florentino Perez and the front office to put an end to this charade.

Aznar does not need time. He needs to go.