Cynicism Subsiding, Rafa Benitez Now Carrying Cautious Optimism at Real Madrid

The cynicism had been fierce, Real Madrid fans almost universally united in their rejection. "Klopp is Real fans' top pick," declared Marca in late May, even as Rafa Benitez closed in on the manager position at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

Benitez had received just 8.9 percent of the vote in Marca's poll of Real fans that had asked who should replace Carlo Ancelotti. A day later, AS, using the same approach, gave its own number for Benitez: 7.8 percent. It hadn't seemed to matter that he was "a known Madridista."

Then, at 10 a.m. on June 3 in the Spanish capital, the official announcement of his appointment came. The reaction, in some parts, was savage. For many, Benitez wasn't a sidestep after Ancelotti but a step down. Some said two steps. Others said three. Dug up were the Madrilenian's numbers, ones relating to both titles and transfers at previous stops, as if they offered some kind of definitive proof that he'd fail. "One Champions League and no league titles in a decade—Benitez matches Real Madrid's mediocrity," ran one headline at Goal. Here at Bleacher Report, Rik Sharma had warned that Benitez had the "potential to be a disaster." Few argued. 

But the rejection was based on more than just credentials; compatibility was also perceived as a major issue. It was easy to picture Benitez, a strong-willed and outspoken character, clashing with figures in both the dressing room and boardroom. Sky Sports' Scott Minto said there was a "coldness" to the new boss, Benitez judged by many as an iron-fist sort of a guy lacking the tact and political nous to navigate the Bernabeu cauldron. 

Benitez hadn't yet lost a game but was facing backlash anyway.  

Andres Kudacki/Associated Press

That was two weeks ago. And in two weeks, the consensus has changed. Perhaps not completely, not by 180 degrees, but it is changing. Madrid is slowly warming to the idea of Benitez. 

"Benitez: speedy success guaranteed," proclaimed Marca recently, pointing to his capture of trophies in the early stages of his previous posts. At AS, a four-part look at the 55-year-old culminated in celebrating his "Rafalution" at Anfield. Last week, Roberto Carlos praised his appointment. Jamie Carragher did the same. Before them, Zinedine Zidane too. Such support may be predictable in the public forum, but those voices carry weight and are reflective of the changing mood toward Real Madrid's newly appointed boss. 

The 2014-15 season now finished, Real's issues in the tumultuous back-end of the campaign are beginning to be digested. Rationalised. January to May has come to be viewed as a five-month stretch of problems but few solutions, a period in which Real Madrid attempted to skate through turbulence with talent and talent alone. Thus, it was telling how Marca described the essence of Benitez's management: "He is all about order. Tactics. Organisation. Devising solutions. Videos. Statistics. Control." At the Madrilenian's unveiling, president Florentino Perez spoke in similar terms when saying the club had hired "someone who is known for his methods and for his professionalism."

The subtext of Perez's message: those qualities weren't evident in Benitez's predecessor. 

Ancelotti can consider himself unfortunate, his fine two-year stint in Madrid brought to an end by a president who couldn't explain the specifics of his decision to axe the Italian. Moreover, it was Perez, with his ripping up of the 2014 European Cup-winning squad, who created the problems Ancelotti couldn't solve. But lying in that mess is one of the reasons why Madrid is slowly warming to Benitez: he's starting to be seen as sort of counterbalance to the president—strong enough to hold his ground; adaptive enough to react to changes. 

Andres Kudacki/Associated Press

For Real Madrid, toppling Europe means toppling Spain. Toppling Spain means toppling Barcelona. But doing so doesn't mean getting bigger, faster, stronger, deeper or richer. It's about getting smarter. Real Madrid lose titles because of their neglect of the fine details—because of the club's belief under Perez that the inevitable winner is the one with the greater sum of parts. Yet that's not how Benitez works; he's a schemer, a fiddler, a tinkerer, a planner; a manager who wants a team to transcend the sum of its parts. He's kind of like the Florentino Perez antidote. And it's that point that's at the heart of the shifting swirl of opinion surrounding the new coach.

Benitez is far from the most decorated manager on the continent; he won't feature highly in measures of popularity, glamour or fame; his track record is a mix of extremes. However there's a growing feeling Benitez—perhaps only in the short term; maybe in the long term—can use his unique approach to steer and steady a ship too often rocked by the man at the top. 

Challenges, of course, are aplenty: defining Cristiano Ronaldo's role, revitalising Gareth Bale, devising a new system, balancing the midfield, settling the goalkeeping saga, managing the Madrid press and introducing rotation are among them. But slowly, Benitez, a problem solver, a once-revered decipherer of riddles, is coming to be viewed as a possible solution. Perhaps not the best manager available, but a manager suitable for Real's particular predicament. 

The cynicism is subsiding. Optimism is growing. Cautiously, but still growing.  

Follow @TimDCollins