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Reality check for Alonso after Al-Hilal draw
The Straits Times
|June 20, 2025
Xabi Alonso's glittering Real Madrid playing career offered no protection for their new coach against the harsh spotlight of expectation on June 18, as they laboured to a deflating 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal in their Club World Cup opener.
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MIAMI - Xabi Alonso's glittering Real Madrid playing career offered no protection for their new coach against the harsh spotlight of expectation on June 18, as they laboured to a deflating 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal in their Club World Cup opener.
The result laid bare the task facing the 43-year-old Spaniard, who will be expected to conjure instant success after swapping Bayer Leverkusen for the pressure cooker of 15-time European champions Real.
"We know things take time, we need to correct a few details, everything takes time. It's been only nine days of work for me here," Alonso told a press conference after watching his depleted squad struggle against opponents they were expected to dispatch with ease.
With captain Dani Carvajal and centre-backs Antonio Rudiger and Eder Militao absent, Real's defensive fragility was exposed, despite the additions of Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
This story is from the June 20, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
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