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TALAVERA GOALIE JAIME GONZALEZ SLAMS XABI ALONSO TACTICS AFTER DRAMATIC REAL MADRID WIN
Real Madrid survives a 3-2 thriller against Talavera. Goalie Jaime Gonzalez rips Xabi Alonso for stalling in the second half.
Talavera goalie Jaime González ripped into Real Madrid after Wednesday's Copa del Rey game. He couldn't believe the tactics Xabi Alonso's team had to use to barely avoid a huge upset.
Jaime was pretty bold for a goalie who just let in three goals. The last one was a real embarrassment—Mbappé's shot bounced weirdly off the turf and went right through his gloves. Real Madrid did win 3–2 to go to the next round, but only after their goalie, Andriy Lunin, made a great save at the last second to stop Talavera from tying the game.
In the first half, Madrid was all over Talavera at their small stadium, letting them get only one shot on goal while bombarding Jaime with shots. Mbappé scored first with a penalty in the 41st minute, then forced another goal right before halftime when his pass bounced off a defender and into the net.
But the second half was totally different.
Real Madrid just started kicking the ball downfield, sitting back, and stalling, Jaime complained, calling Alonso's plan unbelievable.
In the last 45 minutes, Talavera—who are struggling in the third division—had more shots and a better chance of scoring than Real Madrid. Nahuel Arroyo scored in the 80th minute, making everyone nervous, before Mbappé's lucky shot got past Jaime.
"It was a bad bounce, and I couldn't reach it," he said, smiling as he mentioned that Jude Bellingham and Mbappé had apologised to him afterwards.
Talavera kept fighting. With the crowd chanting his name, Gonzalo Di Renzo scored after Isiah Navarro's free kick hit the crossbar. Navarro almost scored again in stoppage time, but Lunin barely saved it, saving Real Madrid from further embarrassment. But Xabi Alonso wasn't worried.
Even though they lost to Manchester City recently, beating Alavés seems to have kept Alonso from being fired as Real Madrid's coach. That 2–1 win wasn't much better than this week's close cup game, but Alonso is only thinking about winning right now.
"The goal was to advance, so I'm happy," he told reporters. These things happen in the Copa; it happened to other teams as well.
They put us under pressure, and Talavera got really into it with their fans behind them. We controlled the first half well and scored, but not making it 0–3 kept the game close.
The second half was tough. We wanted that third goal and had chances, but couldn't score. It was an exciting cup tie. It’s a special competition. We did what we needed to do; now onto the next one.”
It's unclear when Alonso will decide that his goal is to easily beat third-division teams without needing luck. For now, he's focused on beating Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday, no matter how they do it.
JOSELU BREAKS SILENCE: REAL MADRID LEGEND IDENTIFIES MISSING INGREDIENT IN XABI ALONSO’S SQUAD
Does Real Madrid miss Carlo Ancelotti? Joselu compares the "fatherly" past to Xabi Alonso’s difficult start at the Bernabeu.
Ex-Real Madrid player Joselu Mato is giving his take on what's up with the team, as Xabi Alonso looks for the secret sauce. He was with Real Madrid when they last won big under Carlo Ancelotti a couple of seasons back.
Even though Real Madrid wanted him to stay and other teams in Europe made offers, Joselu went for the money and moved to Al-Gharafa in Qatar. He said it was too good an offer to pass up, especially after playing a big part in their La Liga and Champions League success.
Joselu told Diario AS that Ancelotti was a key guy in their winning season.
He was super important. In the locker room, everyone respected him and was committed to him. We knew we wouldn't let him down. He had a lot of experience and was always open to talking. He got that at Real Madrid; no one's ego is bigger than the team. That's why we won. He was like a dad to everyone – the team, the club, and the fans.
So, what's it like walking into Real Madrid's locker room?
Everyone talks about how special it is, and apparently, Alonso had a bit of a hard time getting on the same page with some of the big stars at first. Joselu described what it was like when he first showed up.
When I walked in, I was like, 'Wow!' Kroos, Modric, guys who'd been at Real Madrid for 10 or 12 years, Bellingham who had just gotten there, Vini, Fede, Carvajal, Lucas, Nacho – I'd played with some of them before. I had two thoughts: the first was, 'I'm actually at Real Madrid!' The other was, 'I've been in this room with Carva and Lucas before. I’d practised with Kroos and Modric; I knew the equipment guys and the trainers...'
About their current problems, Joselu said that people have really high expectations for them.
They need a number nine, right? (laughs). The thing is, people are comparing the years they won everything to the years they didn't. We only lost two games the entire year: one in La Liga and one in the Copa del Rey. We tied six others and won the rest. It's hard to do that again, no matter who you are – the best Barca, the best City, the best Madrid...
“It's hard to have another year where you win everything. They're under pressure to keep winning. They’ve got Mbappe, the best goal scorer out there; Vinicius is a superstar; Rodrygo is playing great again; Bellingham; Fede… When you see those names, you think no one can beat them.
So, what's Real Madrid missing?
When pushed a little more, Joselu, who says he still watches all of Real Madrid’s games, said they might be missing some fight.
Maybe they need that competitive fire, that feeling. The year I was there, almost everyone really felt what it meant to wear the Real Madrid jersey, and it mattered to them. I don't know if they've lost that. When you play with that real feeling of being a Real Madrid fan, you get something extra.”
If you're missing something, you need that feeling. I had it, and I saw that Nacho would do anything for the club, Carvajal too, even if he was injured, Lucas Vazquez the same, Fede the same, Vini gives it everything and is a huge Real Madrid fan…
Carvajal, who's now the captain, should be back in 2026 for their first game against Real Betis. Other experienced players like David Alaba and Antonio Rudiger have had injuries, and Valverde hasn't been as strong in the midfield. Kylian Mbappe and Thibaut Courtois are the two who have really stepped up.
REAL MADRID EYE RUBEN NEVES DEAL: MANCHESTER UNITED’S TOP MIDFIELD TARGET UNDER SERIOUS THREAT
Real Madrid have entered the race for Ruben Neves, threatening Manchester United’s plans to secure the Al-Hilal star this January.
Reports say Man Utd was set to grab Al-Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves in January, but Real Madrid has now jumped into the mix.
Despite a shaky performance lately, with only two wins in their last seven games, the Red Devils are somehow holding onto sixth place in the Premier League table.
After a bad first season that saw Man Utd finish 15th, Amorim wants to get the team into a European spot this season.
INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe backed Amorim in the summer, spending over £200m on five new players.
However, fans and former players were annoyed that Man Utd didn't bring in a new midfielder, especially since that position caused issues last season.
It looks like they might get their wish in January. There's talk that Man Utd will for sure sign a new midfielder, but big signings might have to wait until the summer.
That's why Neves is so appealing to Man Utd. Players like him and Atletico Madrid’s Conor Gallagher wouldn't cost as much as guys like Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson and Brighton’s Carlos Baleba.
But now, getting Neves just became tougher for the Red Devils. A Spanish website, Fichajes, claims that Real Madrid is trying to steal the deal.
Apparently, Man Utd was the favourite to sign the Portuguese player, but a new club has appeared that might mess everything up.
Real Madrid has supposedly entered the race for Neves, as they know this is a rare chance.
Neves's contract is up in the summer, and Al-Hilal knows that January might be their last shot to make some money off of him.
The report says that those close to the player haven't ruled out a quick return to European football. At 28, Rúben Neves thinks he's still good enough to play in a top European league. He wants to get back to a more competitive setting, especially with the World Cup and other international games coming up.
Al Hilal is supposedly okay with selling him this winter if they get a decent offer. They don't want to lose a big player for nothing, which means negotiations could happen fast in the next few weeks.
Man Utd is still a serious contender for Neves, but Real Madrid getting involved just made things harder.
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