Former German footballer Toni Kroos has urged patience, insisting that Xabi Alonso deserves enough time to succeed at Real Madrid.
Despite achieving tremendous success early in his coaching career at Bayer Leverkusen, Alonso has struggled at Real Madrid. After a strong start, the team lost its way, drawing harsh criticism. However, Kroos believes in Alonso’s coaching abilities and is confident that given sufficient time, he can deliver the results Real Madrid desires.
After retiring from his playing career, Alonso transitioned into coaching. In 2022, he took charge of Bayer Leverkusen and quickly led the club to remarkable success. Under his guidance, Leverkusen went undefeated in the 2023-24 Bundesliga season, securing their first-ever league title.
Following this impressive achievement, rumors about Alonso joining Real Madrid began circulating. Those rumors became reality in June, when he was appointed as the club’s head coach.
Alonso’s tenure began with mixed results in the 32-team Club World Cup, where Real Madrid reached the semi-finals. The new season started well, with strong performances in La Liga and the Champions League. By early November, the team had topped the domestic league by five points. However, a few poor matches saw them lose the top spot to Barcelona.
This downturn invited sharp criticism, with fans growing increasingly frustrated. His position appeared increasingly unstable, and rumors about a potential sacking started to circulate.
Despite this, Kroos’s confidence in Alonso remains unwavering. Speaking on Brazilian great Romario’s YouTube channel, the former German midfielder said Alonso could restore Real Madrid to its path of success—if he is given time.
“The hardest job as a coach is managing Real Madrid. It’s not an easy task. Here, just winning matches doesn’t make people truly happy, and very few teams are like this. If you draw or lose… this club is simply not used to losing. Criticism comes very quickly.”
“Here, coaches are given very little time. You can’t plan to rebuild a team in a year or two; instant results are expected. I believe Xabi is an excellent coach and has everything it takes to manage Madrid. He already knows what Real Madrid is about. He was aware that challenges like this would come. He just needs time and composure—but that is very hard at Madrid.”
Until recently, Real Madrid appeared completely off-course, winning just two of their last eight matches across all competitions and losing two consecutive home games.
However, Alonso’s team showed signs of recovery before the Christmas break, winning three consecutive matches across La Liga and Copa del Rey. The challenge now is to maintain that momentum into the new year.
With 42 points from 18 matches, Real Madrid sits second in La Liga, four points behind Barcelona. Their next fixture is on Sunday against Real Betis in the league.
