Real Madrid Season Review: The new dawn that never saw daybreak | OneFootball

Season Summary

Real Madrid brought in a new dawn with the arrival of Xabi Alonso, who despite a mixed Club World Cup run that ended with a resounding 4-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, ushered in a new wave of optimism. Los Blancos were modernising. The Santiago Bernabeu were not demanding style while the victories came, winning 15 of their opening 16 games. What first looked like was a team simmering under the surface, the signs of progress and a system that could be sustainable, turned out to be a building pressure under the surface.

It built after the 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid, a first, dramatic sign that there were still demons to exorcise from the Ancelotti era, but it was of course the infamous Vinicius Junior substitution that fully derailed the Alonso one. The former Liverpool man has demonstrated his brilliant mind at Bayer Leverkusen, but it was surprising that he could not handle the dressing room better, having spent so much time around superstars as a player. Less surprising, but equally disappointing, was President Florentino Perez’s willingness to discipline the Brazilian afterwards, which was the first step on Alonso’s funeral march. And all of that afer winning his first Clasico, perfectly orchestrated.

MADRID, 26/10/2025.- El delantero del Real Madrid Vinicius Jr, junto a su entrenador Xabi Alonso al ser sustituido durante el partido de la décima jornada de LaLiga EA Sports, que Real Madrid y FC Barcelona disputan este domingo en el estadio Santiago Bernabéu. EFE/ Sergio Perez

Real Madrid went on a run of three wins in nine games after that, and all but confirmed that the behind the scenes, there were not fractures, but crevasses. When Alonso was dismissed in January, following a Supercup defeat to Barcelona, it was seen as the right decision, given Alonso clearly had insufficient sway over the dressing room to guide them to a title. What followed was an embarassing defeat to Albacete in the Copa del Rey, one that confirmed the fears beginning to impregante the Bernabeu – these issues went beyond the manager.

Alvaro Arbeloa did calm the waters somewhat after another harrowing collapse against Jose Mourinho’s Benfica – seems like he has some promise that Mourinho – but it proved temporary. Much to the delight of the late-night radio debates, it was Kylian Mbappe’s absence that coincided with Vinicius’ best form, and with their best performances of the season, a 5-1 aggregate win over Manchester City. Yet weeks before, also without Mbappe, Getafe had come to the Bernabeu and relatively comfortably repelled Real Madrid’s attack to the tune of an umpteenth historic whistling. That was a sign that Mbappe or not, Arbeloa had not found a magic recipe.

The hope that had built after victories over Atletico Madrid and City was almost cruel. Los Blancos won just one of their six games in April, and despite showing some fight against Bayern Munich, it only raised bigger questions about their lacklustre showings against RCD Mallorca, Girona and Real Betis. Had Los Blancos taken maximum points in those games, they would have arrived at El Clasico with the chance to go top of the table.

Image via AFP

As it was, Real Madrid pitched up with Arbeloa all but gone, Mbappe posting about it on Instagram, and Fede Valverde recovering from an altercation with Aurelien Tchouameni. Perez, whistled by his own fans for the first time in a decade, also failed to make an appearance, as he tries to root out the sinister campaign of whistles against him, which fortunately had nothing to do with poor results. However much the Real Madrid players protested about exaggerated media reports, there was no escaping the fact that at all levels, Los Blancos are living unhealthily.

Verdict: F

While Ancelotti was a master of his craft, Alonso was the new era, and whatever criticisms of Ancelotti’s tactical lack of rigidity, or the seeming inability to impose a masterplan, wouldn’t be a problem under Alonso. Finally, Real Madrid had found their answer to Pep Guardiola, a figure who had the brain to not just give Los Blancos’ talented team new technology to work with, but to bring them to the cutting edge.

Even in the summer though, those paying attention were abundantly conscious of the fact that even if Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Franco Mastantuono were individually promising, the giant void left by Toni Kroos had not been filled. Alonso struggled to coach around it, with Fede Valverde proving for a second season that the only thing he inherited from the German was his number. Neither could Alonso find a combination of roles and spaces for Mbappe and Vinicius to thrive at the same time, nor could he gel with his star players, but there is little doubt that Perez takes his share of the blame for tactitly indulging the Brazilian’s antics.

That ultimately was the death knell for Alonso, but the decision to leave him walking into his own grave for a month did little for Real Madrid’s season, as if waiting for a defeat that would justify the decision, rather than acknowledging that it was the relationship with the players that was decisive. Arbeloa took more of an Ancelotti-style approach, but it could only last as long as the results did, before the harmony began to break down again.

For the space of around a month, Arbeloa looked as if he had found answers both off the pitch and in the dressing room, but when he was asked to replicate them with all of Los Blancos’ stars available, and against Bayern Munich, the test results left his own future in no doubt. Like Alonso, his hands were tied to a degree by the squad at his disposal, and Arbeloa ended up contorting himself in a bid to keep his stars content. Beyond the first 15 games of the season, Real Madrid never settled into a style of play, and never managed a full month of the spirit that would’ve been necessary to circumvent their football problems.

Player of the Season: Aurelien Tchouameni

There is an argument that Kylian Mbappe, winner of the Pichichi award, and in possession of some sensational numbers (42 goals and seven assists in 44 games), deserves this award. Yet it’s also true that Mbappe was somewhat absent in the second half of the season, and scored just twice in La Liga after mid-February. Despite scoring in both legs against Bayern, he also missed some presentable chances in those games.

If you’re to look at someone who played well throughout the season, Aurelien Tchouameni is one of the few candidates. Mbappe’s compatriot had shown signs of revival last year, after being loudly whistled in January of 2025, but started the season off in fine fettle, mopping up behind the attack, recycling possession and snuffing out attacks with machine-like efficiency. As things began to fall apart around him, Tchouameni was the one form of stability, never having a regular partner next to him.

The 26-year-old midfielder was absent for just seven games, but Real Madrid won just two of those outings, a sign of his importance. Naturally his end to the season was dominated by unfortunate headlines, but Tchouameni can with a clear conscience say that he was not one of the problems this season.

Pleasant Surprise of the Season: Arda Guler

Nobody has ever debated whether Arda Guler is talented, but it genuinely looked like he might have to exploit it elsewhere at the end of Ancelotti’s rule. Initially he was played out of position, in a deeper role, as Xabi Alonso tried to cover for a lack of creativity, before gradually drifting forward, and with good reason. Guler finished the season with six goals and 14 assists in his 51 appearances, despite missing the last month of the season, and not always being a starter.

His connection with Mbappe was one of the few mechanisms that functioned for Real Madrid, and against Bayern, two moments of brilliance kept Los Blancos in it in the second leg. He also played a key role in Real Madrid’s dismantling of Manchester City. One of the few players that could open up the pitch for his numerous teammates that like to have the ball at their feet, Guler took a definitive step forward, and proved he can be a factor in big games.

If only we could have had more from: Fede Valverde and Dani Carvajal

Perhaps it is harsh on Dani Carvajal, who was injured for much of the first half of the season, but proved out of his depth on his return to action. Yet in the season where Real Madrid were desperate for someone to set the tone in the dressing room, Carvajal turned out to be one of the problems. The veteran right-back did not take his benching well, and whether it was fair or not, he might have been given more chances had he shown the leadership expected of the captain, had he reined in his teammates during their numerous conflicts this season.

Image via Cordon Press

Which brings us to Fede Valverde. With Carvajal absent, Valverde is the outfield player that by seniority and personality, was supposed to take on the mantle. Carvajal was frustrated he wasn’t playing right-back, and Valverde was frustrated he was. In reality, it’s hard not to interpret Valverde’s hostility as a response to his own shortcomings at the base of the midfield, unable to set the tempo, incapable of dominating the middle of the pitch. As Carvajal and David Alaba depart, Valverde, Vinicius, Ferland Mendy, Thibaut Courtois and Eder Militao are the only starters that remain from the 2022 Champions League final. Militao and Mendy have been unable to contribute due their fitness, but rather than usher a new generation into the winning culture, Valverde joined Vinicius in raising questions about whether he has a long-term future as a leader.

On the horizon, we see…

The truth is, it is hard to point a wide variety of reasons for optimism, but there are some. First and foremost, the standards of the club, and the players who have got this far in their careers, will not allow a third season of such decadence. By human nature, there will have to be a reaction from Real Madrid. Peaking through the concerns over a lack of leadership is a generation of genuinely talented young footballers who have the technical ability to compete at the top level, headlined by the returning Endrick Felipe, Guler, Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras, with a year at the top level under their belts.

Los Blancos have just nine players going to the World Cup, and while emotionally that may be a blow to Huijsen or Carreras, it does mean that they come into the new season far fresher than rivals Barcelona. As this confection of top players grows increasingly desperate to turn their situation around, so will their willingness to obey orders and make compromises.

One of the challenges is whether Real Madrid can fix their midfield – should they find a partner for Tchouameni who can move the ball quicker, and navigate a press, then their game should take a leap forward. The other main question mark is whether the new manager can find a way to get the Vinicius-Mbappe tandem to mould their game, or to find a happy medium where they can both feel comfortable.

If indeed that is Jose Mourinho, the concern is that he may have taken Benfica to an unbeaten season in the league, but his undoing was an inability to unpick more modest defences, something that has plagued Los Blancos for some time. The very best Mourinho sides were based on defensive staunchness, and willingness to give his forwards space to work in, something that has proven trickier as the game has gone on.

What Mourinho has not lost is his charisma, and his ability to connect with players. That on its own should help a dressing room that will be instructed to on its best behaviour by an increasingly under pressure Perez. If Perez can give Mourinho enough of the pieces needed to forge a solid side, and Mourinho can provide a habitat for Mbappe and Vinicius to coexist in, then they have a reasonable shot at the title. It does require Perez, Mourinho and the Real Madrid squad to break their habits over the last two seasons though.