Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa won the Champions League with Carlo Ancelotti as his manager and Xabi Alonso as his teammate, joining the two with the pedigree of being a Merengue manager this season when he took over for a severely disappointing Alonso.
The former star midfielder took charge of the Royal Whites with so much fanfare, wanted badly by his other two elite former clubs, Bayern Munich and Liverpool, after shining at the youth level with his first love of Real Sociedad. But he really made a name for himself back in Germany with Bayer Leverkusen, going undefeated to win the club their first ever title, breaking up Bayern's insane hegemony of the league in the process.
But Alonso never brought that same quality to Real Madrid. His ideas were poor, his execution made Real Madrid look worse, and the players tuned out what appeared to actually be an ego problem from the accomplished former midfielder.
Alvaro Arbeloa is building a 'special connection'
Meanwhile, Arbeloa came in to the job with no real pedigree in the top flight and no ego, instead rallying behind his much maligned cast of superstars. The play has improved, though the flawed squad's results are still not fully picking up in La Liga.
Still, his players very much appreciate what Alvaro Arbeloa has done behind the scenes and his attitude, especially Vinicius Junior, who is a beloved figure at Real Madrid but was being villainzed in an ugly feud with Xabi Alonso.
Vinicius Jr. praised Arbeloa and compared him to the arguable GOAT of Real Madrid managers, Don Carlo Ancelotti, at the press conference before the Bayern Munich first leg, via Madrid Xtra, “With Arbeloa I have had a special connection as I had with Ancelotti. He has always made it clear to me what he wants from me. I have always given my best and I will continue to do so. I don't think I've ever been so long without scoring goals. I've learned from this bad time and I want to keep learning. The best players always turn around.”
It is beautiful to hear the players speak about their manager with open reverence like this, and even though Arbeloa has not accomplished a fraction of what Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane have as coaches or even as players, he is still getting this kind of press from his team.
That shows you the strength of his character and how receptive they are to his humility. Now Vini Jr. and Co. have to win for him so they don't lose him and risk going back to Rafael Benitez 2.0.