Real Madrid have reportedly prepared a successor from within the club to replace Xabi Alonso, should the board decide to make a change to the bench.
Alonso was appointed Real Madrid's new coach in the summer, after transferring from German club Bayer Leverkusen, with whom he won the first Bundesliga title in the club's history.
After joining Leverkusen in mid-2022, Alonso won the Bundesliga, German Cup and German Super Cup at the BayArena, as well as leading the team to second place in the Europa League that season, behind Atalanta.
Following his success on the bench in Germany, Alonso replaced Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid in the summer and signed a three-year contract.
Currently in La Liga, Real Madrid are ranked second in the table and are four points behind leaders Barcelona, while "Los Blancos" are in seventh place in the Champions League group stage table after six matches, still remaining in the automatic qualification zone for the next round.
However, Alonso is under pressure to keep his place at the Santiago Bernabeu, a pressure that was further heightened after the 2-1 home defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League in midweek.
According to the Spanish medium SER chain, Alvaro Arbeloa, who is currently in charge of Real Madrid Castilla, could be the candidate to become the next Real Madrid coach if Alonso leaves.
Arbeloa has been a right-back throughout his playing career and was a teammate of Alonso at both Liverpool and Real Madrid.
The two were also teammates on the Spanish national team during its golden era of success, winning two European Championships and the World Cup together.Telegrafi/
