Real Madrid's new era is exciting and, at the same time, nerve-wrecking. Fans patiently wait for these games, but also appreciate that it is not the final product.
Things take time to be put into place, and right now, even though Xabi Alonso is working on these things, it is time to be patient.
However, Alonso has said a lot of interesting things as a coach already, and Real Madrid press conferences are becoming more football-centric now that he is leading them.
In one of those press conferences, he spoke about two Real Madrid players that, at one point in Carlo Ancelotti's second stint as manager, were overloooked. Both of them were at different times, but it happened, and it was slightly confusing trying to understand why.
Xabi Alonso loves 2 Real Madrid players Carlo Ancelotti once overlooked
Alonso was asked about Arda Guler and Aurelien Tchouameni, and he indicated that both of these players were important to him.
When asked about Tchouameni, he called him a key player of the team, saying: "He is a pillar in the squad, because of his weight and his different roles, he’s constantly making small decisions to help the team. He wants to be important and that willingness is very important.”
Similarly, he wanted Guler to be as close to the ball as possible. He said: “He’s one player that is special because the more touches he has, normally the better plays himself and better plays the team. The other day, he had a very good impact in the second half as he was close to where everything’s happening, I think that it helps him.”
Ancelotti did not initially trust Tchouameni, especially in all the big games after the World Cup in Qatar in 2022. He started Toni Kroos as the sole pivot, and until he realised how much the team was struggling in that sense, it was too late, and Real Madrid had already lost to Manchester City by four goals.
The same happened with Guler. In his first season, Guler did not play at all. However, when Real Madrid saw that there is a lot that can be achieved with Guler in the team, Ancelotti struggled to try it out.
When he did it, it was already too late as that was not the only problem that Real Madrid were facing.
So, it is good to see that Alonso trusts these two players and wants them to be as involved as possible.
Obviously, time will tell whether he actually trusts Guler or not, but I think it is safe to say that Tchouameni is going to be very, very important in Alonso's setup.