Real Madrid squad react positively to Alvaro Arbeloa change – Football España

Real Madrid are now three weeks into the tenure of Alvaro Arbeloa as senior manager, and its been a run of ups and downs so far for the former Castilla coach. There is one improvement that Arbeloa will feel he can build on though.

Los Blancos have gone out of the Copa del Rey to Albacete in a dramatic upset, and were beaten handily by Benfica in the Champions League to condemn them to the play-off round – where they will meet Jose Mourinho and the Portuguese giants again. The other four games have been wins for Arbeloa, and Real Madrid haved cut the gap at the top of the Liga table to just one point as things stand.

Real Madrid squad happy with Alvaro Arbeloa change

The big issue for predecessor Xabi Alonso appeared to be his relationship with several stars, which kicked off his downfall. Cadena SER’s Manu Carreno has confirmed that a number of players were not happy with Alonso’s method, or how things were going in training. His information from the Real Madrid dressing room is that even if performances are yet to reflect it, the atmosphere at Valdebebas has improved. Carreno explains that the general feeling is the change of manager has been welcomed, and they are happy with Arbeloa thus far.

Crucial run for Real Madrid

With Real Madrid not participating in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey or the semi-finals, they will finally have two free midweeks in which Arbeloa can schedule more training sessions. Thus far most of the sessions he has had have been either recovery time, or direct preparation for matches. Ahead of their Champions League play-off round, Los Blancos face Valencia (A) and Real Sociedad (H), after which fans and the hierarchy alike will be looking for signs of improvement and change.