When Florentino Perez decided to bet on Zinedine Zidane in place of Rafael Benitez on January 4, 2016, many saw it as a desperate attempt to use an idol to cover up for a mistake.
It appeared to be an attempt to silence the criticism that was coming his way and to try to move on from a bad start to the season.
But, 649 days later, nobody has any doubts about the Frenchman and his abilities anymore.
He is a coach who is now one of the best and most important in the history of the club and whose record has put paid to any suspicions about his appointment.
On Saturday he will celebrate his 100th game in charge of the club when they take on Getafe, a momentous milestone achieved in a short space of time.
Real Madrid, although it may be denied, had other plans for Zidane. He was being groomed to take charge when Benitez's time in charge at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu ran its natural course, but had results speeded up events.
The decision did involve a big degree of risk as Zidane was and is more than a coach in the eyes of the fans and is an absolute idol to the Madrid faithful due to his experiences as a player.
He was exposed to the demanding environment of the Bernabeu at one of the most delicate moments in recent years at the club and many had doubts about how he would adapt and cope as coach, given his limited experience with the Castilla side.
On January 4, he was presented at the Bernabeu with his whole family alongside him as he wanted to share with them one of the most special moments of his life.
He didn't pause for a second to consider how the opportunity had come about or the consequences that it could have for his career, accepting the challenge with a smile that remains on his face today.
Now, 99 games later, Zizou is now one of the best coaches the club have ever had, to the point that there are already doubts about who was more important to the club: Zidane the player or Zidane the coach.
He has already won more titles on the bench than he did on the park as a player. January 9, 2016 was the date of his coaching debut against Deportivo La Coruna and he started with a 5-0 win, the first of 76 that he has achieved during his time in charge.
Given his outstanding start, all kinds of things were used to justify how well he had settled, with the biggest perhaps being that he was 'a lucky coach', as merits and plaudits instead seemed to go to other coaches with much worse track records than the Frenchman.
At the start of his Los Blancos coaching career, he utilised an untouchable BBC in attack, but has now changed things up and uses a 4-4-2 system for a variety of reasons, including the performances of men like Casemiro, Isco and James Rodriguez, now at Bayern Munich.
Ahead of his 100th game in charge against Getafe, Zidane can reflect upon a coaching career which has already brought him seven trophies.
He won two successive Champions League titles (the first coach ever to do so), two UEFA Super Cups, a Club World Cup, Supercopa de Espana and a LaLiga title, the latter having been won with an interesting rotation system that is now being mimicked elsewhere.
During his 99 games, he went 40 successive matches without tasting defeat, won a record 12 straight home games and went a stunning 74 consecutive matches in which his side hit the back of the net.
Those are record numbers which prove that he isn't merely a lucky coach or one who is doing so well because of the strength of his squad. The story continues against Getafe.