Real Madrid’s Champions League elimination by Bayern Munich will surely provoke another period of upheaval at the Spanish side, starting with Alvaro Arbeloa’s position as head coach.The 43-year-old was only appointed in January when replacing Xabi Alonso, but such is the nature of managing Madrid that defeat by Bayern after a chaotic second leg at the Allianz Arena means he will very likely be dismissed, although he may carry on in the role until the end of the season.
Wednesday night’s result – a 4-3 defeat on the night and a 6-4 loss on aggregate – means Madrid are almost certain to finish this term without a major trophy.They were knocked out of the Copa del Rey by second-division Albacete in Arbeloa’s first game in charge, and defending champions Barcelona lead them by nine points in La Liga with seven matches to play – including a Camp Nou Clasico on May 10, when the Catalans could seal the title.
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Kylian Mbappe and Andriy Lunin after Real Madrid’s Champions League exit to Bayern Munich
Madrid ended the 2024-25 campaign without a major title, too. The last time they went two seasons without such success was 16 years ago. Under long-serving president Florentino Perez, only one manager who ended a season without a major title has returned for the following campaign – Zinedine Zidane.If Arbeloa is the next to move on, therefore, it should perhaps not come as a total surprise.”Right now, I’m not thinking about any of that at all,” he said on Wednesday night, when asked whether he wanted to stay or go. “I’ll say it again: it’s the club’s decision and I’m a loyal supporter. All I want is for Real Madrid to win, regardless of who’s in charge.”
But there is something different about the situation around Madrid right now. Big change could well be on the cards at other key departments at the club, after an especially turbulent past few months – even by their standards.So, who might replace Arbeloa? What’s behind this wider turmoil? And what can we expect to happen next? The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana explains.The information contained in this article reflects multiple conversations with various sources at Madrid, all of whom wanted to speak anonymously to protect relationships.How damaging is this Champions League exit?Madrid are often described as the most ruthless and demanding club in football. Numerous coaches have found this out the hard way. One of…
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2026-04-16 12:04:00
