Minutes after confirming their decision to sack Xabi Alonso, Real Madrid have now announced that former defender Alvaro Arbeloa will replace him as the first-team manager.
“Real Madrid CF announces that Alvaro Arbeloa is the new first team coach,” the club statement read.
A former Real Madrid player, Arbeloa spent seven seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu between 2009 and 2016, making over 200 appearances and winning several trophies and titles.
In 2020, after retiring, Arbeloa returned to the club, joining La Fabrica as a coach. He managed the Infantil A team in the 2020-2021 season, winning the league title, the Cadete A team in 2021-2022, and the Juvenil A team from 2022 to 2025.
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As Juvenil A manager, he achieved the treble in 2022-2023 (League, Copa del Rey, and Champions Cup) and the league title in the 2024-2025 season.
Last summer, he was promoted to the position of the Castilla manager, taking over from another club legend, Raul Gonzalez.
In a short time with the reserve team, Arbeloa has done a solid job, enough to impress the management to hand him the keys to the first team.
Arbeloa’s first assignment will come later this week as Real Madrid take on Albacete in the Copa del Rey Round of 16 on Wednesday.
