Xabi Alonso should take cues from Dortmund to fix the Bellingham problem | OneFootball

Real Madrid’s debut under new manager Xabi Alonso against Al Hilal was far from convincing, but perhaps the most alarming aspect of the mixed performance was the display of Jude Bellingham.

The Englishman’s lack of influence was a stark continuation of his muted form from the end of last season, which should already raise alarm bells for the Real Madrid coaching staff.

Alonso’s vision meets a difficult reality

Since his unveiling, Alonso has been clear about his plans for the star player, waxing lyrical about him due to his dynamism on the pitch.

“Obviously, I see him as a midfielder. He’s very dynamic, and finding him in the right positions will help him and us,” he said about the Englishman.

However, against the Saudi team, that vision failed to materialize. Tasked with operating from a deeper midfield position, Bellingham looked like a square peg in a round hole.

He was a peripheral figure, neither dictating the tempo from deep nor providing the attacking thrust that defined his sensational start to life in Madrid.

The statistics paint a concerning picture: he was Madrid’s seventh-most effective player in terms of ball recoveries (50), significantly behind the more disciplined Fede Valverde (66) and Aurelien Tchouameni (63).

Bellingham struggled a lot against Al Hilal (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

This suggests a player caught between two roles: not quite a defensive anchor, and no longer the liberated attacking force he was during his first season at the club.

Most tellingly, despite playing 88 minutes, Bellingham had fewer touches than Arda Guler (56), who was on the pitch for only 54 minutes.

While his pass accuracy remained high, his overall involvement was worryingly low. The “Bellingham issue” has now landed squarely on Alonso’s desk.

How can Alonso solve the Bellingham conundrum?

To solve this conundrum, Xabi Alonso may need to look back at the blueprint Borussia Dortmund used to turn Bellingham into a global superstar.

In Germany, Bellingham wasn’t a static midfielder, nor was he the auxiliary forward he became under Ancelotti. He was the team’s relentless engine, a dominant, all-action box-to-box number 8.

From a deeper starting position, he was given the license to seize the ball and drive forward, breaking lines with his trademark powerful runs.

His role was defined by dynamic action and progressing the ball through the heart of the pitch, not just rigid positional discipline.

Xabi Alonso needs to find answers quick for the Bellingham problem. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

The answer for Alonso may lie in recreating that environment at Madrid. Instead of shackling Bellingham with heavy defensive duties, he could be designated as the team’s primary ball-carrier from midfield.

By pairing him with the defensive security of a holder like Tchouameni and the tireless work-rate of Valverde, Alonso can build a structure that unleashes Bellingham to play his natural game.

This isn’t about giving him a free role, but a specific one: to be the man who breaks the opposition’s shape and links the midfield to the attack.

This would make him harder to mark and allow him to use his football intelligence to pop up in the “right positions” that Alonso mentioned, rather than being tethered to one.

It would be equally important for Bellingham himself to work closely with Alonso in harmony and find out what suits the best for him as Real Madrid gear up for yet another grueling campaign.