Al Jazeera reports: And so it came to pass.Down by two at half-time at Camp Nou – and it could have been a lot more – hanging in there to limit the damage and humiliation was key, but the 2-0 defeat will have cut deeply for a club that has lifted 36 league and 15 Champions League titles.The defeat means Real will finish second this season, not an unusual circumstance in what has regularly been a two-horse race in La Liga. Advertisement Last season did not go to plan, though.Mbappe’s arrival broke up the 4-3-3 formation that had served Real so well for so long, with English midfielder Jude Bellingham playing a key, advanced role, while Vinicius Junior thrived in front of and around him.Both were forced to shift position to accommodate Mbappe, who prefers to drop deep from his central position to link up play or run with the ball.It trod on the toes of the two key performers.
Even Ancelotti was not immune to the famed Real chop as rumours circulated all season that his failure to gel the team would bring to an end the Italian’s Spanish love affair.Enter Xabi Alonso.Heralded as the answer to Madrid’s problems after sweeping through German football with Bayer Leverkusen, Alonso is also hailed as a midfield maestro as a player for both Madrid and the Spanish national team.Rumours were rife from the off that the players did not buy into Alonso’s system, and friction was often apparent with Mbappe, despite the forward’s refound scoring ability. His 24 goals have him two clear at the top of this season’s Spanish scoring chart.Alonso’s time was clearly up long before the end came, just after the clock ticked in the new calendar year.
Background
Alvaro Arbeloa was given the task of guiding the seemingly rudderless ship to the end of the season as interim head coach.Mbappe’s troubles were only just beginning, though. But he regarded his second-placed finish behind cross-city rivals City with the Old Trafford club as one of his greatest achievements.Lifting Real one place from their successive runner-up spots in La Liga may not be beyond the 63-year-old, who won La Liga, the Copa Del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup with Real in his 2010-2013 stint. The spell also resulted in three Champions League semifinal appearances.The Portuguese also provided an early-season wake-up call for Real in this campaign, when his Benfica side claimed a 4-2 league-phase win that pushed Los Blancos into the Champions League playoffs, which they did eventually progress from with a win against Benfica in a rerun over two legs.Who else could be the next Real manager?The rally-rousing Jurgen Klopp would certainly help with the reconnection Real so desperately need with their fans.
Key facts
- Alvaro Arbeloa was given the task of guiding the seemingly rudderless ship to the end of the season as interim head coach.Mbappe’s troubles were only just beginning, though.
- He is renowned in his title-winning spells, both domestic and European, with Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, for uniting the players and fans in a shared, focused mindset.
- It could be the antidote for the current malaise, a cathartic approach that contrasts with the momentum building behind Mourinho’s latest comeback.
What this means
He is renowned in his title-winning spells, both domestic and European, with Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, for uniting the players and fans in a shared, focused mindset. It could be the antidote for the current malaise, a cathartic approach that contrasts with the momentum building behind Mourinho’s latest comeback. Advertisement Another widely respected German is Julian Nagelsmann, who is currently in charge of his country’s national side, but may call time on the role after the 2026 World Cup.At 38 years old, it may be seen as a risk – not dissimilar to the 44-year-old Alonso – but a three-year stay with Bayern Munich, prior to taking on the German job in 2023, may count in his favour.It is thought that Didier Deschamps may also be coming to the end of his time in charge of the France team, and his former French international teammate Zinedine Zidane is also linked with a second spell at Real.
Despite his 57 years, Deschamps has limited experience as a club manager, a contrast with another of the perceived frontrunners, Massimiliano Allegri, who led Juventus to five consecutive league titles in his native Italy.The task of leading one of the most successful clubs in football is becoming unenviable. But the rebuild begins now, and the rise will start out of the ashes of the crash and burn that culminated in Sunday’s defeat, deep in enemy territory, at Camp Nou.
Originally reported by Al Jazeera. This story has been edited and re-presented by BRIC Team.
