Julen Lopetegui speaks out after Los Blancos sacking

Real Madrid casualty Julen Lopetegui has broken his silence after being sacked just 14 matches into his Bernabeu tenure.

The Spaniard left his national team just three days before the World Cup in June to replace Zinedine Zidane in La Liga.

But Lopetegui's reign has been disastrous, with the club winning only one of their last seven games - and recently enduring a club-record 465 minutes without scoring a competitive goal.

Sunday's 5-1 El Clasico defeat to arch-rivals Barcelona was the final nail in the coffin for the former Porto boss.

And Lopetegui has now spoken out about his time at Madrid.

"After the decision adopted by the board of directors of Real Madrid , I want to thank the club for the opportunity it gave me," he said.

"I'd also like to give thanks to the players for their effort and their work, as well as to each and every one of the club's employees, for their good treatment of me during this time."

"And, of course, my gratitude to the fans for their encouragement."

"Best wishes for the remainder of the season."

Madrid released a statement on Monday evening, reading: "The Real Madrid board met on Oct. 29, 2018, and have agreed to end the link between Julen Lopetegui and the club.

"The decision will hopefully change the dynamic the team is currently in, with all this season's objectives still attainable."

"The board feel there's a huge gap between the quality of the Real Madrid squad -- eight players nominated for the upcoming Ballon d'Or -- and the results obtained so far."

"The club thank Julen Lopetegui and all his staff for the effort and work they have done and wish them the best in their professional careers."

Antonio Conte was the clear favourite for the job until last night.

With reports suggesting talks have stalled with the Italian, former player and now youth coach Santiago Solari looks set to take over from Lopetegui.