Julen Lopetegui will still be Real Madrid’s manager when they face Barcelona in el clásico on Sunday night, despite him walking off to the sound of whistles.

Although Real won for the first time in five games and much as Lopetegui expressed hope that it was a turning point, a 2-1 victory over Viktoria Plzen did not convince supporters at the Santiago Bernabéu and will not have been enough to win over the club’s president, Florentino Pérez, who is inclined to wield the axe. The club’s director of institutional relations, though, insisted Lopetegui will remain in charge – at least until the weekend.

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Asked if Lopetegui would be on the bench in Barcelona, Emilio Butragueño replied: “Yes, yes, [we’re approaching that game] with absolute normality. In situations like this it is very important to stay calm, be united and trust in the players.” Pushed as to whether Lopetegui would continue beyond that, regardless of the result at the Camp Nou, Butragueno was less clear. “We live this [situation] as something normal,” he said, failing to finish his next sentence as he continued “we hear rumours but we’ll go to the Camp Nou...”.

Informed of that vote of confidence and asked what it meant to him a few minutes later, Lopetegui said: “That’s far from important; what’s important was winning the game today. The team had a great need for this triumph – their coach did too of course. We want to get out of these circumstances. You can’t change everything overnight but we hope this is a turning point.”

“We haven’t always won when we deserved to but football is like that,” Lopetegui added. “We came from a run of quite a lot of games without winning and the objective was to win in circumstances that were not at all simple. It’s true that when there is a moment of weakness because you won’t win, any team is more susceptible which is why it was so important to gain victory. We need to gain a little tranquillity bit by bit: we have to keep going. On Sunday we have a game that motivates us a huge amount.”

Lopetegui then responded a little pointedly when it was put to him that he appeared affected by the pressure he has been under of late. “Did you study psychology?” he shot back. “I’m happy. I don’t smile that often [anyway], you know that. I’m fine, don’t worry, I appreciate your concern. I’m happier than [last Saturday] because we have managed to win.” This win was not the kind that brings a crisis to a close, however, and Real’s manager will know that this alone will not be enough to rescue him, even if it does carry him through to Sunday.

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Marcelo’s goal against Levante at the weekend had been Real’s first for eight hours and one minute – just 13 minutes short of their worst drought – and was insufficient to prevent them being beaten for a fourth time in five games. Although they got two more here, Lopetegui knows the club are seeking his replacement and that only the same lack of alternatives and time that helped put him in the job in the first place are keeping him in a job now.

This game was never likely to be decisive; the way it played out was certainly unlikely to convince anyone that Real’s ills are over. The Czech side had previously been beaten 5-0 by Roma and while the hosts took a 2-0 lead with goals from Karim Benzema and Marcelo, a goal from Patrik Hrosovsky with 12 minutes remaining demonstrated Real’s vulnerability.

Plzen had previously made, and failed to take, three excellent opportunities, and threatened to score an equaliser during the final, nervous minutes here. The fans had feared another failure and at the end there was relief but also anger. Plzen’s players applauded their fans while Real’s departed swiftly. Lopetegui had gone before them, whistles ringing round. He will have another opportunity – or rather an obligation – on Sunday, but beyond that it’s a different story.