Carlos Queiroz took charge of Real Madrid in the summer of 2003. He stepped into one of the most high-pressure jobs in association football. The club had just sold Claude Makélélé and signed David Beckham. Queiroz inherited a dressing room filled with Ballon d’Or winners like Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Luís Figo, and Raúl.
Things started well. Real Madrid won the Supercopa de España against Mallorca in August 2003. They played brilliant attacking association football during the first half of the domestic league campaign. The team sat comfortably at the top of the La Liga table by early spring.
The Dramatic Collapse of Spring 2004
Then everything fell apart. Real Madrid suffered a shocking physical collapse in the final months of the season. They lost the Copa del Rey final to Real Zaragoza. They crashed out of the UEFA Champions League against Monaco. Most notably, they lost five of their last seven league matches to finish fourth in Spain.
The club sacked Queiroz on May 24, 2004, after just ten months in charge.