Real Madrid hero criticises decision to appoint Arbeloa as manager

Alvaro Arbeloa was appointed as Real Madrid head coach in January, but already, he is facing an uncertain future at the Bernabeu. There is increasing talk that he will not be offered a contract extension, which would open the door for him to be replaced as the club’s manager.

Arbeloa replaced Xabi Alonso, who left Real Madrid via mutual consent after the Spanish Supercup final defeat to Barcelona. The new era started well, but the wheels have started to fall off in recent weeks, which means that Los Blancos trail their El Clasico rivals by four points in the La Liga title race.

According to former Real Madrid defender Ivan Helguera (via MD), the decision to replace Alonso with Arbeloa was the wrong one. He did not agree with the former’s exit, but when he did go, he wanted a more experienced campaigner to arrive.

“It didn’t make sense to sack Xabi Alonso. If you sack Xabi Alonso, you have to have an experienced coach in the dressing room to deal with all this. Right off the bat you get a kid who has never coached in the First Division. I don’t think Arbeloa is the right one for a situation like this. Real Madrid cannot improvise on the bench in such delicate moments.”

Helguera: Real Madrid have to learn a lot from Barcelona

Helguera also slammed Real Madrid’s lack of academy focus in recent times, which is something that Arbeloa has also commented on recently. In this regard, he is envious of Barcelona.

“The fact that Barça have a great academy has made everything easier for them, it’s something that Real Madrid have to learn a lot in that aspect. It’s been a long time, except for Asencio, that Real Madrid academy players haven’t been sold, and it’s a handicap. Barça take care of the game and we only take care of winning. For me it is important to also relate it to the game.

“A coach arrives and plays in one way and tomorrow another arrives and plays in another way. Not at Barcelona. It’s the coaches who have to adapt and you see that they adapt. Maybe the mentality of that winner is lacking in Barcelona and it’s a good thing that we have at Real Madrid. I love how Barça manage the academy, that’s wonderful.”