Who is Alvaro Arbeloa, the man who has experienced everything at Real Madrid and who will succeed Xabi Alonso on the Merengues' ben

Alvaro Arbeloa, the new coach of Real Madrid since the dismissal of Xabi Alonso on Monday, January 12, has the distinction of having experienced all age groups within the Madrid club, both as a player and now as a coach.

At 42, Alvaro Arbeloa is about to embark on his first experience as a professional team manager. Icon Sport.

Real Madrid already knows the name of its new coach. Moments after announcing the mutual departure of Xabi Alonso , dismissed the day after the Merengues' defeat in the Spanish Super Cup final against FC Barcelona (3-2) , the Spanish club confirmed that Alvaro Arbeloa , the coach of the reserve team, would succeed him with immediate effect.

This choice might seem surprising given the inexperience of the 42-year-old manager, who is about to embark on his first experience managing a professional team, but it falls within Real Madrid 's usual procedure when a coach is dismissed mid-season. This was notably the case for Zinedine Zidane , who became first-team coach on January 4, 2016, after having been in charge of Castilla for two seasons.
A pure product of the Madrid youth system

While Alvaro Arbeloa may not possess the same aura and cannot boast of having had the same career as "ZZ," he remains a well-known name at the "White House." A product of the club's youth academy, he progressed through all the ranks, playing for the C team and then Castilla before making his professional debut in the 2004-2005 season. A natural right-back, he spent the majority of his career in the Spanish capital, where he played from 2009 to 2016 after his breakthrough at Liverpool .
Total record: 238 matches, two Champions League successes and a Spanish league title, adding to a record that was also quite extensive under the national team jersey, as Arbeloa was part of the blessed generation of La Roja who were double European champions and world champions between 2008 and 2012.

Impressive results with the U19s but worrying ones with the reserve team?

Having retired from playing at 34 after a final, unsuccessful stint at West Ham in 2017, the new Real Madrid boss wasted no time in returning to his beloved club, where he has undoubtedly experienced everything. Eager to embark on a coaching career, the former defender once again climbed through the ranks of the youth teams: Infantil A (U13), Cadete A (U16), and then Juvenil A (U19), an age group with which he notably won the treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and Champions League in 2022-2023.

Appointed Castilla coach in June 2025, replacing Raúl, another Real Madrid legend, he has struggled to make his mark. With 12 wins, 3 draws, and 8 losses, the reserve team currently sits fourth in its group in the Primera RFEF, the third tier of Spanish football. These are disappointing results considering the resources available to Arbeloa, who face not only other reserve teams but also semi-professional clubs every weekend.

Is that enough before diving into the deep end to manage Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius and Jude Bellingham? The first indication will come on Wednesday in the Copa del Rey against Albacete.

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