Xabi Alonso might’ve suffered one of the worst fouls in World Cup history from Nigel De Jong of the Netherlands in the 2010 final. The challenge was so ugly because first, the ball is far from play, second, De Jong went after Alonso’s CHEST with his studs, and third, because De Jong should’ve received nothing but a red card. But Xabi Alonso is such a man, that he brushed the foul off and went on to win the World Cup with Spain for its first and only time.
But winning the World Cup is just a single title in a bursting trophy cabinet, both at country and club level. You name the prize, and Alonso probably won it multiple times in Spain with Real Madrid, in England with Liverpool and in Germany with Bayern Munich.
So as a player, he was just incredible. But as a coach for Bayer Leverkusen, and in his first senior coaching job, he’s also incredible.
So here are 4 reasons Xabi Alonso Will Become The Best Coach Ever:
One:
He got into a disagreement with Cristiano Ronaldo over a penalty. As the penalty shooter, Alonso walks up to him and tells him, “Venga, trae el balón”, “c’mon, give me the ball. So he wasn’t afraid to stand up for himself even against Greats like Ronaldo. And instead of missing the penalty like some other fool might, he so elegantly scores like he often did.
Two:
He got to closely watch the greatest two players of this generation and maybe of all times when he played alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, and when he played multiple times against Lionel Messi. A great coach is one who studies the opponent and learns from them. So despite being humiliated by Messi especially in the El Clasico 5-0 defeat, which he called it the worst of his career, he still probably learned a lot from those tough lessons that Messi gave him.
Three:
He worked under some of the best coaches. Amongst them, Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola. In the 2011-12 season, Real Madrid with Mourinho accomplished what came to be known as the "La Liga de los Récords" (Spanish for "The League of the Records") by reaching 100 points in the league, which had never been accomplished before in Real Madrid’s entire history. Later on, he left Madrid and said that the chance to work under Guardiola was the main reason he decided to leave. During his three seasons at Munich, he won the title at the end of each campaign.
Four:
Bayer Leverkusen were a mess when he took over. With only one win from their opening eight Bundesliga matches, they were second from bottom, but Alonso and despite his very short managerial career, he calmly guided them to the UEFA Europa League and to a sixth-placed finish in the league. And now, they are currently FIRST in the league and just last month they drew with Bayern Munich in the Allianz Arena, where veteran coach Thomas Tuchel couldn’t beat him.
So, are we looking at Real Madrid’s next coach given Carlo Ancellotti’s contract expires this summer? And would it be too soon to coach a huge club like Real Madrid? Or should he stay at Leverkusen till the end of his contract in 2026 so that he gains more experience?