Who is Álvaro Arbeloa, the Real Madrid replacement for Xabi Alonso?

You can see a tsunami approaching, but nothing can prepare you for the impact.

Xabi Alonso and Real Madrid have reached a “mutual agreement” that will see the former midfielder leave his role as head coach of the first team.

In his place steps a teammate of Xabi’s: Álvaro Arbeloa.

The retired right back steps into the biggest shoes in world football, taking over a Real Madrid side that are coming off the back of a painful yet not entirely dispiriting 3-2 loss to FC Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup.

Álvaro Arbeloa is a well-known figure in Spanish football, having come though the academy at Real Madrid in the early 2000s.

After failing to consistently break into the first team he moved to Deportivo in A Coruña, before taking a move that would change the course of his career. Liverpool came calling next and on Merseyside he would go on to feature in the UEFA Champions League final in 2007, losing to AC Milan in a historic game. It was here that he first played alongside Xabi Alonso, the man he now replaces at Real Madrid.

Real Madrid moved to sign Arbeloa in 2009, where he joined the club alongside Alonso, Kaká, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Arbeloa would go on to play over 150 times for the club, winning a LaLiga title, 2 Copas del Rey, a Super Cup, and 2 Champions Leagues. He also won the FIFA Club World Cup and a UEFA Super Cup with Real Madrid.

At international level, Arbeloa was part of the historic Spain squad that dominated world football, winning consecutive European Championships and a World Cup in between.

He joins Real Madrid as manager after having taken charge of the youth teams at the club, as well as Real Madrid Castilla, the B team.