Real Madrid have sacked coach Xabi Alonso after a Super Cup final loss and replaced him with former player Alvaro Arbeloa.
REAL Madrid have parted ways with coach Xabi Alonso by mutual consent.
The decision follows the team’s 3-2 defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final on Sunday.
The club immediately appointed former Madrid defender Alvaro Arbeloa as his replacement.
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“Real Madrid announces that, by mutual agreement between the club and Xabi Alonso, it has been decided to bring his tenure as first-team coach to an end,” the club said in a statement.
A separate statement confirmed Arbeloa’s promotion from his role as coach of the reserve team, Castilla.
Arbeloa’s first match in charge will be a Copa del Rey last-16 tie away at second-tier Albacete on Wednesday.
The 42-year-old former Spain international played 238 games for Madrid between 2009 and 2016.
Alonso had been in charge for less than eight months after joining from German champions Bayer Leverkusen in June.
He replaced veteran coach Carlo Ancelotti but struggled to find consistency with the team.
Madrid currently sit second in La Liga, four points behind leaders Barcelona.
French superstar Kylian Mbappe paid tribute to Alonso on social media.
“It’s been short but it was a pleasure to play for you and learn from you,” Mbappe wrote on Instagram.
Alonso was close to being sacked towards the end of 2025 but a run of five consecutive wins saved his job temporarily.
His tenure included heavy defeats to Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid early in the season.
Despite a Clasico win over Barcelona in October, president Florentino Perez was reportedly not fully convinced by Alonso’s methods.
The team’s form dipped amid an injury crisis, with key attackers Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes struggling for goals.
Spanish media reported Alonso would have been dismissed if Madrid lost to Manchester City in the Champions League in December.
Although they lost that match, an improved performance earned him a brief reprieve.
The Super Cup final defeat in Jeddah proved to be the final straw for the Madrid hierarchy. – AFP
