'Thinks He's Pep, But...'! Xabi Alonso Has Ruffled Feathers Early At Real Madrid, Say Sources

Last Updated:October 29, 2025, 18:07 IST

Alonso, who replaced Ancelotti at the helm, has taken a more hands-on and strict approach as compared to the Italian gaffer, much to the shock of multiple players in the squad.

Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso (AP)

Reports suggest that the arrival of new coach Xabi Alonso has ruffled some feathers in the Real Madrid lineup with players unsettled over the change in methods of training and decorum at the Capital City Club.

Alonso, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti at the helm of the club, has taken a more hands-on and strict approach as compared to the Italian gaffer, much to the dismay of multiple players in the squad.

One of the initial changes Alonso had brought in was his emphasis on the need for everyone on the side to run harder and work harder when the opposition was in possession, and, without that, no-one would be guaranteed a place.

“Some of them have won so much without doing these things that when these have been imposed on them, they have complained," a source said.

Sources state that several players were upset to find they now had little freedom to express their qualities on the pitch, contrasting Alonso’s more demanding and rigid approach to the team’s style with how things were under Ancelotti.

“Madrid have gone from having a coach who was hardly involved in training sessions to one who seems like just another player," another source added.

While another report claimed that the Madrid players feel that Alonso seemed rather distant and unapproachable as compared to the popular Ancelotti.

“He thinks he’s Pep Guardiola, but for now he’s just Xabi," a source close to a senior member of the Madridista squad said.

Alonso led Madrid to an emphatic 2-1 win over heated rivals Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday in the first El Clasico of the year in a morale-boosting win for Los Blancos snapping a run of four successive defeats in the bragging rights fixture last year out.

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