Florentino Perez's dream becomes a nightmare again as Madrid left without treble

Florentino Perez's biggest dream is, at the same time, his worst nightmare. The Real Madrid president has an obsession: Barça. Better said, Barça's success. And he is determined to equal the two trebles that the Blaugrana have won under Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique. He will not economise on effort of money to achieve it. And it doesn't matter how many managers it costs him along the way. He had been thinking that he'd found the perfect manager to achieve his objective. But Zidane has let him down. The Copa del Rey KO against Celta Vigo leaves Madrid without the treble once again -- in January. And it's turned Perez's biggest dream into a recurring nightmare. The legendary Barça remain out of reach of a Madrid hung up on their rival's titles. 

The cup elimination, as well as being a sporting blow, also represents a tremendous psychological blow to a fallen Madrid. The start of 2017 has been tough for Los Blancos, who are suffering the consequences of the 'curse' of the Club World Cup. To lose their first title of the season so soon could have an emotional affect which could take its toll in La Liga (where they have already began to show signs of weakness) and even in the Champions League. The invincible Madrid of three weeks ago is now a vulnerable team and looks more common all the time. The failure of Florentino Perez's latest project is a little closer.