After guiding Bayer Leverkusen to an historic unbeaten domestic double last season — securing the club’s first-ever Bundesliga title and ending Bayern Munich’s 11 years of dominance — it was only a matter of time before Xabi Alonso became heavily linked with Europe’s elite.
With Carlo Ancelotti expected to leave Real Madrid at the end of the season, or possibly sooner depending on results, Alonso looks poised to take the next big step in his managerial career.
On the latest episode of The Athletic FC Podcast, Ayo Akinwolere was joined by Real Madrid writer Guillermo Rai and Tomas Hill Lopez-Menchero to discuss whether now is the right time for the 43-year-old to return to Madrid, and if he’s ready for the pressure that comes with managing one of the world’s biggest clubs. Watch the full discussion below.
A partial transcript has been edited for clarity and length. The full episode is available on YouTube below or in The Athletic FC Podcast feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Ayo: Tomas, this is a really interesting one that we’ve been talking about for a while. Do you think it’s time for Xabi Alonso to step up? He had a wonderful season last year with Leverkusen when they went unbeaten in the league, and this season has been OK as well. It hasn’t been great, but it’s been OK. They’re still second in the Bundesliga, and had an OK Champions League run.
Some might say perhaps he wants to test himself at a bigger stage, but there’s also a certain Florentino Perez on the other side, who is a tricky customer, isn’t he?
Tomas: Yeah, it’s hard to say whether it’s the right time for Xabi Alonso. But you could ask that about any coach being linked with Real Madrid, because it’s such a big job with unique pressures. I do think him having bided his time as a coach over the past couple of seasons plays in his favour. He’s clearly chosen a pretty intelligent path by coaching Real Sociedad’s B team, where he came through as a player, and then going to Leverkusen, maybe a bit out of the spotlight.
I definitely see parallels there with Zidane when he joined Madrid as a legendary former player. But Xabi Alonso is far advanced in his coaching career and has already achieved such great success with Leverkusen, which plays in his favour. Again, it’s just how the chips fall when you’re actually at the Bernabeu. I do think his experience at the club as a player, where he also left on his own terms, all helps.
He knows how to manage those unique pressures, and the players would look up to him. You know that from reading, watching and listening to interviews with his Leverkusen players. They look up to him because of the legendary playing career he had, and I’m sure he would be able to instil his philosophy at Madrid. You just feel like he has the personality to do that.
Ayo: Yeah, he does have a certain aura because of what he’s won as a player and as a coach now, especially with what he’s done at Leverkusen. But the expectation at Leverkusen when he arrived would have been a lot different to the expectation and the pressure of arriving at Real Madrid. Especially off the back of a season where they haven’t won the Champions League, and there’s a chance they might not win La Liga or the Copa del Rey either.
He’s going to be coming into that and trying to implement new ideas, which will be difficult. Do you think he’s the kind of coach who can wear that pressure?
Guillermo: He has the experience from his career as a player, as you said, which will help. He also knows how Real Madrid works, and he was a coach at the Real Madrid academy, which was his first job as a football coach. So I would say that he has the experience. But when you arrive at Madrid as the coach of the first team, it’s a completely different scenario. So we will have to see, because he hasn’t had this experience at Leverkusen.
I remember a conversation I had with a Real Madrid senior source back last year when there were some discussions regarding Xabi Alonso’s future. The source told me something significant, which was, “We understand that Xabi is staying for one more year because he has nothing to lose at Leverkusen, and all that he does is positive for the club.”
It was something that I considered significant because at Real, it’s difficult to get anything positive apart from a triumph, apart from a title. In other clubs, if you see growth and development, then people will be happy. But here at Real, even if the fans complain, or even if some directors complain about the style, what they really need is the triumph and the victory. Xabi will have to deal with that along with all the changes that will take place. And if Real Madrid have to pay something for him, the pressure will be higher.
Even though we were talking about a gentleman’s agreement earlier, it has been reported elsewhere in Germany that there could be a breakout clause in his contract with Bayer Leverkusen. So imagine if Real have to pay a fee for Xabi Alonso. That will only increase the pressure, and people will say, ‘If we are paying for a coach like a player, then he will have to deliver.’
You can listen to full episodes of The Athletic FC Podcast for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and watch on YouTube.
(Top Photo: Lars Baron/Getty Images)