Xabi Alonso, Real Madrid fundamentally disagree on a key signing

The Xabi Alonso era at Real Madrid got off to a predictably rough start on Wednesday afternoon in the United States, as the Merengues could only muster a 1-1 draw against Simone Inzaghi’s Saudi Pro League giants, Al-Hilal.

Real Madrid were outplayed for vast stretches of the game, and a familiar issue cropped up for the team in this Club World Cup opener; Real Madrid failed to have any real control over the game.

It will take some time for the Royal Whites to adapt to Alonso’s coaching style and shake off the bad habits of the last season under Carlo Ancelotti, but it will also take a few more key signings in order for Real Madrid to have the right squad for its new coach after going trophyless in the 2024/25 season.

Real Madrid have already added a new right back in Trent Alexander-Arnold and a much-needed young starting center back in Dean Huijsen, who may have been the only real bright spot in the draw with Al-Hilal.

Xabi Alonso asked Real Madrid for an important profile

But more help is needed. Real Madrid still require an out-and-out No. 9 to add a box presence and more goals to the team, but perhaps their most important need is another midfielder who can playmake from deep and help the Merengues control games better.

According to a report from MARCA, via Madrid Xtra, Alonso has actually asked Real Madrid to sign a controlling midfield profile, but Florentino Perez and Real’s important decision-makers disagree with the new manager on this need; they believe their current crop of midfielders in more than sufficient for the club’s goals.

It’s not a new dispute either. Alonso wanted Real Madrid to steal Martin Zubimendi away from Arsenal, but Perez told Alonso in no uncertain terms that he felt Real Madrid didn’t need to make that signing.

Instead, journalist Jorge C. Picon is reporting that Real Madrid have been looking for a creative midfielder for “months”. But instead of signing a controlling pivot-type player like Alonso wants, Picon says that Real Madrid want a mobile, box-to-box player who can link midfield to attack and create chances; they want a Luka Modric-type player to replace Lukita, who will depart the club after the Club World Cup.

Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t backed properly last year either

It’s clear and obvious to all Real Madrid supporters that the team is not the same without Toni Kroos. He played at a Ballon d’Or level in the 2023/24 season en route to leading Los Blancos to the LaLiga and Champions League titles.

Without Kroos, Real Madrid fell apart at the seams last season and were outclassed by top teams like Arsenal, Liverpool, Barcelona, and even Atletico Madrid in terms of the control on the game.

Alonso knows exactly what he needs to win and have the squad required for his tactics and style of play, and it looks like Real Madrid are doing the same exact thing that led to Zinedine Zidane leaving and Carlo Ancelotti floundering in his final season at the club.

Perez and Madrid have a bad habit of not supporting managers with smaller signings that they want. Florentino tends to have a rigid idea of what the club needs to win and a focus on big names, which led to him bypassing defensive signings that may have changed the course of the last season dramatically.

Now, he and the club brass are already butting heads on a very reasonable signing and profile in midfield that Real Madrid clearly need. Alonso has come in and identified a major weakness that Madridistas have noticed in the year since Kroos retired, but all of a sudden Los Merengues don’t want to back him on that. And if that’s the case, it could be a mistake that colors the story of Alonso’s first season at the Santiago Bernabeu.