Julen Lopetegui was made the scapegoat for Real Madrid’s problems. The Basque coach was sacked by president Florentino Perez recently after just 14 games in charge. In reality, though, the issues run much deeper.

Santiago Solari took over and led Los Blancos to four wins in a row, a run of results which saw the Argentine confirmed as permanent coach and handed a contract which runs until 2021.

But such contracts mean little at Real Madrid. Lopetegui’s also ran until 2021, but was terminated after just a few months. Solari’s will not be yet, but his honeymoon period ended with a bang at Eibar.

Real Madrid lost 3-0 and it is no exaggeration to say that it could have been four, five or even six. On a small and narrow pitch at Ipurua, Solari’s side seldom looked comfortable.

The Argentine was without defensive midfielder Casemiro and picked Toni Kroos in a deep role instead. The German is not suited to that position, though, and Real were overrun in midfield.

In Pictures | Eibar vs Real Madrid | 24/11/2018 22 show all In Pictures | Eibar vs Real Madrid | 24/11/2018 1/22 REUTERS 2/22 REUTERS 3/22 REUTERS 4/22 AP 5/22 AFP/Getty Images 6/22 AFP/Getty Images 7/22 AP 8/22 AFP/Getty Images 9/22 REUTERS 10/22 REUTERS 11/22 REUTERS 12/22 AFP/Getty Images 13/22 AFP/Getty Images 14/22 AFP/Getty Images 15/22 AFP/Getty Images 16/22 REUTERS 17/22 REUTERS 18/22 eal Madrid's Luka Modric in action REUTERS 19/22 Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos, Toni Kroos and team mates during the warm up before the match REUTERS 20/22 Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema and Raphael Varane during the warm up before the match REUTERS 21/22 Real Madrid's Marcelo during the warm up before the match REUTERS 22/22 General view of action during the match REUTERS 1/22 REUTERS 2/22 REUTERS 3/22 REUTERS 4/22 AP 5/22 AFP/Getty Images 6/22 AFP/Getty Images 7/22 AP 8/22 AFP/Getty Images 9/22 REUTERS 10/22 REUTERS 11/22 REUTERS 12/22 AFP/Getty Images 13/22 AFP/Getty Images 14/22 AFP/Getty Images 15/22 AFP/Getty Images 16/22 REUTERS 17/22 REUTERS 18/22 eal Madrid's Luka Modric in action REUTERS 19/22 Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos, Toni Kroos and team mates during the warm up before the match REUTERS 20/22 Real Madrid's Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema and Raphael Varane during the warm up before the match REUTERS 21/22 Real Madrid's Marcelo during the warm up before the match REUTERS 22/22 General view of action during the match REUTERS

There was no alternative on the bench, either. Marcos Llorente was left out altogether and could leave the club on loan in January, while Mateo Kovacic joined Chelsea in the summer and Federico Valverde was picked as a substitute, but never made it onto the pitch.

Madrid tried to pass the ball around at Ipurua, but rarely managed to string a meaningful spell of possession together. This was a match made for a more direct approach and perhaps that is why Solari selected both Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio. But the lack of midfield control was the biggest problem.

This was the type of game in which Cristiano Ronaldo thrived. So often, Madrid would be under pressure or even outplayed and the Portuguese would pop up with an important goal out of nowhere to turn things their way. But he left in the summer to join Juventus and was not replaced.

Against an intense and physical rival, Solari should have picked a team to match Eibar’s efforts. Instead, he attempted to win it with superior football alone and without Casemiro as a shield, both Luka Modric and Dani Ceballos were exposed in midfield.

Defensively, Real were a disaster and on-loan Barcelona left-back Marc Cucurella caused havoc down his flank. He was involved in all of Eibar’s best attacks and at the age of 20, he already looks a fantastic prospect.

For Madrid, this was a performance reminiscent of some of their showings under Lopetegui as they failed to create clear chances and lacked control in midfield. In fact, they had goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to thank for a scoreline which was bad, but could have been a lot worse.

“We didn’t play well and we accept that,” Solari said afterwards. “We have to work to correct it.” And he added: “The boys worked hard, they gave everything. But we lost small battles and that can weigh heavily.”

It did and Lopetegui also found that out during his short reign, which ended with a pointed statement by Real Madrid about how he had not reached the required level with “eight Ballon d’Or nominees” in his team.

Watching on from the stands with a stern expression etched upon his face at Ipurua, Perez saw the European champions produce a display which showed that the problems run far deeper than just the coach – however many Ballon d’Or nominees you have in your team.