ACT NOW: XABI ALONSO DEMANDS THREE HUGE SIGNINGS BEFORE JANUARY TRANSFER WINDOW SLAMS SHUT
Xabi Alonso targets Ibrahima Konate and Florian Wirtz for Real Madrid. Plus, the truth behind the Bruno Fernandes transfer links.
Real Madrid's coach, Xabi Alonso, isn't dropping his dream of getting Ibrahima Konate and Florian Wirtz from Liverpool over to the Bernabeu. Apparently, Real Madrid is still thinking about whether or not to go for Bruno Fernandes, who plays midfield for Man U.
With the January window coming up, the Spanish papers are full of rumours about Real Madrid trying to snatch players from Liverpool and Man U.
Alonso, who used to play midfield for Liverpool, has gotten some breathing room after winning his last few games as Madrid's coach. Now, he's supposedly trying to get Real Madrid's president, Florentino Perez, to sign three players in 2026, with a couple coming from Liverpool.
According to Defensa Central, Alonso wants Madrid to sign Ibrahima Konate and Florian Wirtz from Liverpool, plus Angelo Stiller from VfB Stuttgart, all in the January window.
Even though Alonso knows these deals are pretty much impossible and no one's arriving, he still has Konate, Wirtz, and Stiller on his wish list. But let's be real, this news outlet tends to make stuff up.
Madrid has already decided not to go after Konate, whose contract with Liverpool ends this season.
But sources say that Liverpool thinks some agents are trying to talk Madrid into changing their mind about Konate.
Alonso coached Wirtz back when he was at Bayer Leverkusen and wanted him for Madrid when he took over as coach last season. But Liverpool ended up coughing up £116 million to get the Bundesliga club to sell the German midfielder.
Real Madrid is thinking about a Bruno Fernandes deal:
Alonso wants a new midfielder, and Fichajes says that Bruno Fernandes from Man U is someone Madrid likes a lot.
The English papers said Madrid might make a move for Fernandes in the summer of 2025, and now the Spanish media is saying Real Madrid is interested in the Portuguese star.
Just keep in mind that Fichajes isn't always right, so take anything they say with a grain of salt.
The report says Madrid could pay Fernandes' release clause of €60 million, which is in his Man U contract.
But the big question is Fernandes' age. He's 31 now, and Madrid usually doesn't spend big on players that old.
The debate is whether to go for someone who can perform right away or think about the future.
Bruno Fernandes would be great from the start, but he doesn't really fit the usual transfer plan.
Sources say that Man Utd isn't planning to sell Fernandes in the January window.
Fernandes, who's hurt right now, gave a pretty explosive interview in November where he called out the Man U directors for being willing to sell him in the summer of 2025.
The Nico Paz transfer is called the deal of the century:
Madrid already has a plan to bring Nico Paz back to the Bernabeu next summer.
Paz is doing great at Como right now, after joining them from Madrid in the summer of 2024.
We've heard that Madrid plans to use the €9 million buy-back clause in Paz's contract with Como next summer.
Our transfer guy, Graeme Bailey, has reported that Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Man City have all tried to get Paz to change his mind. But the Argentina international midfielder is set on going back to Madrid at the end of the season.
Defensa Central is all about Madrid's decision on Paz, calling it the deal of the century.
THE BERNABéU REBORN: HOW TRENT’S RETURN UNLOCKED REAL MADRID’S MOST LETHAL ATTACKING FORM
Trent Alexander-Arnold is back! Read about his stunning assist in Real Madrid’s 4-1 win and Arbeloa's tactical plans for Benfica.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is back on the pitch, and he’s loving it. After a frustrating spell out with a muscle injury, the former Liverpool full-back finally started for Real Madrid again, his first time in the lineup since early December. You could see the difference right away.
Last weekend, he eased back in with a second-half cameo against Valencia, helping Los Blancos to a 2-0 win. But this week, he was straight into the starting eleven against Real Sociedad and wasted no time making his mark. Five minutes in, he whipped in one of those classic assists for Gonzalo Garcia, who slotted it home to open the scoring. Real Madrid didn’t stop there: Vinicius Junior netted twice, Federico Valverde added another, and they cruised to a 4-1 victory.
Alexander-Arnold came off after the hour mark, no surprise, since he’s still finding his rhythm after the injury. After the match, he jumped on Instagram, posted some photos, and simply wrote, “Good to be back,” adding a white heart emoji. Sometimes, that says it all.
It’s been a tough first season at the Bernabeu for him. Injuries have kept him from showing Madrid fans the same world-class quality Liverpool supporters saw every week. But now, with that first assist under his belt, he’ll want to prove he’s worth the hype. His manager, Alvaro Arbeloa, is pretty confident he will. After the game, Arbeloa said, “Working with Trent, you notice right away how smart he is. He reads the game, and he gets what we’re asking for. He’s not just a typical fullback hugging the touchline; he can drift inside and play centrally. That’s what we want: players who can switch things up. We’re lucky to have him.”
Next up for Alexander-Arnold and Real Madrid? Benfica in the Champions League play-off. The first leg is on Tuesday night, 8 pm kickoff. The second leg follows just over a week later. With knockout football on the line, there’s plenty to play for.
THE BERNABéU FRACTURE: WHY ALVARO ARBELOA IS LOSING THE REAL MADRID LOCKER ROOM
Alvaro Arbeloa faces a Real Madrid dressing room revolt! Read about the clashes with Alaba and Guler’s shocking Arsenal ultimatum.
Reports say Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa keeps butting heads with some of the main voices in the locker room; he’s not getting along with three of his stars.
Arbeloa took over at the start of the year, stepping up from his job with Real Madrid Castilla after Xabi Alonso got the boot. Alonso lost the dressing room and ran into a losing streak he couldn’t shake, and now it’s starting to look like Arbeloa is dealing with the same sort of headaches.
The club brought in Arbeloa fast, hoping he could steady things, but honestly, it’s not clear if he’s more than just a stopgap. Real Madrid’s season hangs by a thread; they’re still alive in La Liga and the Champions League, but that’s it. Another year without a trophy feels possible.
Lately, people keep linking Madrid to big-name managers like Jurgen Klopp and Unai Emery, fuelling talk that Arbeloa might not stick around much longer.
On top of that, rumours out of Spain say Arbeloa has clashed with three team ‘leaders’. David Alaba is one of them. He’s frustrated, thinks he deserves a bigger role, and he’s not quiet about it. The same goes for Federico Valverde and Dani Carvajal. Both have reportedly bumped heads with Arbeloa over playing time and their standing in the squad. It’s not the first time this has happened; Arbeloa’s authority keeps running up against these senior guys who want more influence. Now Alaba’s in the mix too, which only makes things messier for the coach.
Then there’s Arda Güler. He’s been linked with Arsenal for a summer move and isn’t happy either. Spanish site Fichajes says Guler has basically given the club an ultimatum. He’s improved a bit under Arbeloa, but he still feels stuck on the sidelines and doesn’t like the atmosphere in the dressing room. He’s made it clear that if he doesn’t get a proper shot and some real leadership from the bench, he’s out of Madrid this summer.