Real Madrid parts ways with Xabi Alonso, promotes Álvaro Arbeloa
Real Madrid dismissed coach Xabi Alonso after eight months, replacing him with B-team manager Álvaro Arbeloa following a Super Cup final loss and locker-room tensions.
Overview
Real Madrid replaced head coach Xabi Alonso with former teammate and Castilla manager Álvaro Arbeloa after Alonso's tenure lasted less than eight months.
The announcement came Monday, a day after Madrid lost 3-2 to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Alonso faced pressure from poor performances, reported disputes with players like Vinícius Júnior and perceived loss of control of the locker room, prompting club action.
Alonso managed 34 matches across competitions, recording 24 wins, six losses and four draws; Real Madrid sits four points behind Barcelona at La Liga's halfway mark.
Arbeloa, 42, a former Madrid and Spain defender with multiple titles, had coached the B team since June and will take interim charge immediately.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame Alonso's exit as an inevitable consequence of managerial failure, using evaluative idioms ('pulled the trigger', 'to no surprise') and labels ('tumultuous stint'), prioritizing locker-room conflict and substitution disputes. They balance this with source content—match stats and the club's conciliatory statement—while the narrative emphasis leans toward downfall.
Sources (3)
FAQ
Xabi Alonso managed 34 matches, recording 24 wins, 6 losses, and 4 draws, for a win percentage of 70.59%, which is the fourth-best in Real Madrid's history.
Alonso was dismissed after a 3-2 loss to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final, amid poor recent performances, a nine-point swing in La Liga standings, and reported locker-room tensions including disputes with Vinícius Júnior.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the 42-year-old former Real Madrid and Spain defender who was coaching the B-team (Castilla) since June, has been appointed as interim head coach.
Xabi Alonso's tenure lasted less than eight months, from June 1, 2025, to January 12, 2026, covering exactly 34 games; it was not the shortest in club history.
History
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