Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid exit: How it all went wrong

The new year brought yet another loss of management as Xabi Alonso is no longer Real Madrid coach after just seven months at the helm of the company. It has been an up and down season for Los Blancos, highlighted by a defeat against Barcelona in the Supercopa de España this weekend, it seems Florentin Perez wanted to make a change as soon as possible.

Considering that eight minutes passed between Madrid’s statement on Alonso’s departure and its statement on Alvaro Arbeloa taking over as coach is clearly something that was in the works before the Clasico defeat, but this defeat was the final nail in the coffin. Where did it all go wrong for Alonso? He was the most promising coach in football and entered Real Madrid at the top of the managerial world. He now leaves with Los Blancos on course to make the top eight in the league stage of the Champions League and within touching distance of Barcelona for the league title, but none of that mattered.

Alonso is not far from finishing Bayern MunichIt is reign domination in the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen In the 2023-24 season, and although he narrowly went from having an invincible season, losing in the Europa League final, he showed that his teams could be among the best in world football. Despite this dismissal, he will remain one of the names in the management market, but it is difficult to understand how it all unraveled so quickly.

June and July: overcoming the difficulties of the start of the Club World Cup

Upon taking over, Alonso has had the ability to adapt to his position in some ways thanks to Los Blancos’ participation in the Club World Cup instead of a standard pre-season. While he had to spend time during the tournament without Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellignham, it was a good opportunity to get an in-depth look at players like Arda Guler And Gonzalo Garciawhich we all counted on at the start of the season for Madrid. New defenders like Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnonld also got a look and, although the tournament ended in disappointment, they were eliminated by Paris At Saint-Germain, it seemed the foundations for a turnaround under Alonso were being laid. After failing to win a trophy last season, expectations were high for Alonso at Real Madrid, but following increased spending he looked set to meet them.

September: A Madrid derby that changed everything

At the start of the season it seemed to be much of the same: despite their struggles, Madrid were getting results despite the red cards, but everything was falling apart at the worst possible moment. After six perfect opening matches, Alonso’s first defeat in Madrid was a 5-2 embarrassment in the hands of Atletico Madrid. It was a game where they were completely dominated, conceding a penalty and allowing 13 shots for an xG of 2.31 and Alonso’s defense was on fire on the away side. This would end up being a match that foreshadowed the struggles to come as in November Real Madrid began to drop points to teams below them in the table with draws at the hands of Girona, ElcheAnd Rayo Vallecanowhile Barcelona were ahead in the standings. During these matches, despite more than 20 shots per match, the Madrid attack did not find the net.

October: Clasico changes everything, as Vini Jr. shows frustration

The October Clásico marked a turning point. Xabi Alonso’s side won 2-1 while having their lowest possession of the season at just 31.7%. Before that, Real Madrid were dominating matches, having almost 60% possession and winning 12 matches, losing just one while scoring 30 goals and allowing 11 in 12 matches. After this match, the scenario was reversed. Real Madrid’s possession rate has fallen to around 57% and in 12 matches played, they have won six, lost three and drawn three between La Liga and the Champions League. They allowed their opponents to easily bypass their defensive third, which led to more shots than Thibaut Courtois can stay out of his net.

This October Clásico was also the time when Vinicius Junior showed the public his frustration with Alonso as he was knocked out of the match and made his feelings known. Alonso’s predecessor, Carlo Ancelotti, was known as a player coach at Real Madrid during his time there, and that was something Alonso would have to contend with while trying to instill his own standards at the club. Except that doesn’t work at a club where the most powerful man is the president, Florentino Perez, and not the manager. Real Madrid’s commercial and on-field success has been driven by Perez’s leadership, and nothing was going to stand in the way of that, not even a former player as manager.

Perez appeared to take Vini Jr’s side after this public argument, which in retrospect seems like the beginning of the end.

January: Alonso leaves Real Madrid

Now, fast forward, and with Alosno out, Madrid have now signed someone who will presumably run the club however they see fit. An upcoming schedule that sees Madrid avoid most of the world’s best teams until March will give Arbeloa time to find his place, but Alonso will also be one of the hottest names on the managerial lists of Europe’s top clubs. Coming back to a club that allows him to do what he does best to instill a winning culture is something that should lead to success because Madrid don’t operate like most clubs in the world. The manager’s position at the Santago Bernebau is unique, but as long as Perez is in power that will continue to be the case and whoever takes the helm will either run things the Madrid way or end up gone before you blink.