Real Madrid: Xabi Alonso Seeks to Rebuild After Club World Cup Defeat
Real Madrid, under the direction of Xabi Alonso, will start next season with a complete renovation, as stated by the coach on Wednesday, after a 4-0 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup semi-final, where the tactical change did not yield the expected results.
The absence due to suspension of Dean Huijsen and the injury of Trent Alexander-Arnold forced Alonso, who took over the position a few weeks ago, to modify the defensive formation. He left behind the five-defender line that had been effective in the tournament, opting for a defense of four.
This tactical change meant that Gonzalo García played alongside Kylian Mbappé, who finally recovered from an illness that kept him out of much of the competition. However, this strategy did not work as expected.
Paris Saint-Germain quickly exploited Real Madrid’s defensive weaknesses, scoring two goals in the first nine minutes. The LaLiga team was outplayed on the field.
“We were losing by two goals and we couldn’t react,” Alonso commented. “It was a painful defeat, we must admit that we were not up to the task today.”
Xabi AlonsoMadrid made no significant changes at halftime. Alonso told reporters that he believed the team had some scoring opportunities before making several substitutions in the second half.
“We had some shortcomings at certain times and sometimes it’s good to see our mistakes and learn lessons for the future,” he said.
Xabi Alonso
Although the bitter taste of defeat will persist, Alonso assured the fans that better things will come next season and did not rule out the possibility of new additions.
“We are starting a new stage after a break, with a fresh mind,” he said. “We want to build a team that plays as a unit, with everyone playing together… we were one game away and it’s painful and let’s see what happens now.”
