While some may not see it as such, Real Madrid bringing in Xabi Alonso to replace Carlo Ancelotti is certainly a risk. We’re talking about the biggest club in world football and, on the flip side, we’re talking about one of the most exciting young managers in the sport.
With that being said, Alonso’s long-term potential is still unclear despite his resounding success with Bayer Leverkusen. He’s obviously got all the potential in the world but at the age of just 43, he’s only just getting started with his managerial career.
The Spaniard has been able to lead Real Madrid to the semi-final in the Club World Cup and in doing so, he’s already made a few brave calls. He showed guts in sticking with Gonzalo Garcia ahead of Kylian Mbappe, he’s been calm under pressure with his decision making despite some tough challenges, and he was quick to throw Raul Asencio back into the mix as the replacement for Dean Huijsen following his red card against Borussia Dortmund.
Some wouldn’t be surprised to see some level of doubt creep into his management style given the magnitude of the task ahead of him, but Alonso has made a living out of being composed and decisive when crunch time arrives. While winning multiple trophies in his first season may seem ambitious, a quick look at our free bet calculator will tell you that it certainly isn’t outside the realm of possibility.
They face an incredibly winnable first six games in the form of Osasuna, Real Oviedo, Mallorca, Real Sociedad, Espanyol and Levante before arriving at the Madrid derby and from there, they could easily build a platform that sets them up for a really strong campaign. There are never any guarantees in the beautiful game but the early signs are promising.