David Alaba joined Real Madrid in 2021 as the new No. 4 and the replacement for Sergio Ramos, who had a falling out with president Florentino Perez over wanting more than a one year deal, believing that he was far from finished and able to get more than just a year. But Perez and Real Madrid have strict requirements for aging players to only sign year by year, and despite Ramos indeed playing tremendous football, Perez did not acquiesce to an exception for Ramos, especially after an injury plagued 2020/21 season with Eder Militao playing so well in his stead, and with his brother nipping at Flo's heels, Perez let him go to PSG for mega bucks.
The move actually paid off for Real Madrid. Ramos was indeed phenomenal for PSG in 2021/22 when he did play, but he almost never played due to injury, including missing a decisive Round of 16 Champions League knockout against Real Madrid. Los Blancos went on to win the Champions League, and Alaba and his fabled chair were vital to that success.
But Alaba's high point quickly had a come down. Injuries started to plague Alaba, and his ACL tear in 2023/24 effectively doomed his career. Alaba has been unable to recover from that injury since and has been a shell of his former self. This season, he has only appeared in 10 league games for Real Madrid with 4 La Liga starts, looking totally past it while also rumored to be one of the malcontents behind the scenes (but at least having the decency to be quiet about it).
David Alaba is finished at Real Madrid
Alaba is 100 percent gone from Real Madrid this summer with his contract expiring, and Real Madrid need to sign multiple good center backs to replace underperformers like Alaba, Raul Asencio, and, hopefully, Antonio Rudiger.
Even so, David Alaba himself has one final shot to prove to anyone else watching in world football that he is not finished. Because despite his horrible 2025/26 season for Real Madrid, the legendary Austrian international has, rather unsurprisingly, made the 2026 World Cup squad.
Alaba is 33 and a shell of himself now, but his experience, quality on the ball, and theoretically great defending and versatility would be beneficial to the Austrian national team XI. It's also not like Austria have a ton of other options. A strong World Cup could be Alaba's way to make a statement and potentially, like Ramos, hang around in top European football for one more season before moving abroad. It's unlikely but maybe not impossible.
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