The Real Madrid enigma

Coach Xabi Alonso refused to provide information about Real Madrid's starting lineup for their upcoming Club World Cup opening match.

Vinicius's role in Xabi Alonso's system is a big question mark.

Speaking in an interview on June 14th, the Spanish coach said: “Everything is going very positively. Step by step, I’m starting to understand the players, getting the necessary contact. Today, Lunin, Vinicius and Arda Guler were present at training, and we will begin to form the team.”

When asked if he had selected the starting lineup for the match against Al Hilal on June 19th, Alonso briefly replied: "Not yet, it's still too early."

Real Madrid are participating in the FIFA Club World Cup with eight injured players. The defense is a cause for concern for Alonso, as Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy, David Alaba, and Dani Carvajal are still unavailable. In goal, Lunin will replace Thibaut Courtois as Real Madrid's starting goalkeeper.

Nevertheless, Alonso believes this is an opportunity to test the defense, especially since new signings Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnold have already trained with their new teammates.

"Everything needs to be sped up, because we have very little time to get acquainted and train. Real Madrid has ambitions to have a good tournament and try to reach the final," Alonso added.

Marca reports that the public is curious about how Alonso will implement his new system at Real Madrid. The former Leverkusen coach has a wealth of top attacking players such as Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, and Jude Bellingham, but how "Los Blancos" will build play from the back and control the game remains a big question mark.

Opta estimates Real Madrid are only ranked 5th in the Club World Cup race, with a 10% chance of winning. Coach Alonso's debut will undoubtedly attract significant attention from the global media.

Mbappe's brace on the final day of La Liga: On the night of May 24th, Mbappe scored a brace in Real Madrid's 2-0 victory over Sociedad in the 38th round of La Liga at the Bernabeu.

Source: https://znews.vn/an-so-real-madrid-post1561031.html