For his first time at the helm of Real Madrid, Alvaro Arbeloa surely couldn’t imagine a worse scenario. Opposed to Albacete, a modest team ranked 17th in Liga Adelante, the second Spanish division, the Merengues took the door in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey this Wednesday evening.
Trailing three times, Vinicius Jr. and his partners came back together twice but ended up losing following the final achievement of Jefté Betancor, author of a double in the last ten minutes (82nd, 90th + 4).
A real earthquake for the Spanish giant, mired in an increasingly deep crisis, having led to the departure of coach Xabi Alonso, replaced by Arbeloa on the sidelines on Monday.
Towards a hostile reception from the Bernabeu on Saturday?
Deprived of several important elements for their trip to Albacete – including Kylian Mbappé – the Madrilenians suffered a second setback in a row, three days after losing the final of the Spanish Super Cup against FC Barcelona (3-2). It is also the prospect of a second trophy flying this season for “the White House”, after an already disappointing 2024-2025 financial year.
For Arbeloa, it is therefore a very difficult takeover, while an already crucial reception from Levante is looming on Saturday in La Liga. According to several Spanish media, the reception at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium should be particularly hostile towards the players, accused of having sabotaged Xabi Alonso and caused his departure.
