Xabi Alonso defended his strange team selection and tactical choice following Sunday’s frustrating 2–2 draw against Elche in La Liga, setting up in a new formation and starting with Vinícius Júnior, Federico Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga on the bench.
Alonso opted to line up in an uncharacteristic 3-4-1-2 for the trip to Spain’s south east coast, due to multiple defensive injuries and several players racking up miles on international duty.
Álvaro Carreras was moved from left back to left-sided center back, alongside Dean Huijsen and Raúl Asencio, with the latter continuing to fill in while Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba, Éder Militão and Aurélien Tchouaméni are all unavailable. Fran García was drafted in for a rare start as a left wing back, with Trent Alexander-Arnold mirroring on the right and Dani Ceballos starting in midfield.
Los Blancos fell behind early in the second half when Aleix Febas scored for Elche, soon after which García and Ceballos were withdrawn as part of a triple substitution that saw Vinícius, Valverde and Camavinga all enter the game.
Madrid got back level through Huijsen with 12 minutes to play, before falling behind a second time and relying on a late Jude Bellingham equalizer to at least salvage a point and stay ahead of Barcelona in La Liga’s standings, 13 rounds in.
“It’s a familiar position [for García],” Alonso insisted postgame as he defended the failed experiment.
“He’s played there a lot. After the match, the players who stayed [off international duty] had more training time, and those on the bench were important to bring fresh legs in the second half. We wanted width on the wings. It was a shame we conceded early when we were looking to come back. We fought hard, and after the equalizer, I think we needed to push forward a bit more.”
Alonso insisted there was “no problem” because García understood and “knew the role” he was being asked to play.
Xabi Alonso: ‘The Team Hasn’t Collapsed’
After being held by Rayo Vallecano before the international break, Real Madrid have now dropped points in successive matches against teams most would expect them to beat easily, especially given a run of 10 wins and one loss from the first 11 La Liga fixtures of 2025–26.
“It’s soccer. After a good run, we've had results that aren’t what we wanted,” Alonso conceded.
He added that no one can be “happy” with the last few weeks, but isn’t hitting the panic button.
“The team hasn’t collapsed,” he stressed. “It’s still competing. The results and the play can be improved. We’re self-critical, but the spirit remains good. We must persevere in the face of adversity. This is Real Madrid, and we know we have to live with criticism.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Xabi Alonso Explains Bizarre Real Madrid Tactics in Frustrating Elche Setback.
