Real Madrid keeps the same attitude with which they ended last season. That is, with many doubts. They're playing a watered-down Club World Cup, and many of their footballers seem to be on vacation. Against Al-Hilal, Xabi Alonso's team couldn't get past a 1-1 draw, and the most impatient have already started to question some footballers' attitude.
On social media, there were criticisms of players like Vinícius, and, with humor, some even called for Carlo Ancelotti's return. They ask Xabi Alonso to be tougher and to know how to separate his friendship with the footballers from his work as a coach.
Tomás Roncero wanted the spotlight and highlighted Barça's absence. In a play on words, he posted a tweet saying Hansi Flick's team was playing against "Al-Sofa." This backfired on him because of his own team's performance. Meanwhile, Enric Canyellas took the opportunity to bring him down.
"Tremendous match today," said Tomás Roncero, adding a supposed crest of the invented team "Al-Sofa." To which Canyellas replied: "So tremendous, just imagine the laughter from the sofa."
There were also images of Florentino Pérez watching the match with a worried look. Los Blancos, like the rest of the teams, have until the end of August to go to the transfer market. Seeing the team's play, signing is more necessary than ever. We'll see what happens.
real madrid - al-hilal, a match to forget
The debut of the new Real Madrid under Xabi Alonso in the 2025 Club World Cup, against Al-Hilal, was a mix of promises of brilliance and moments of fragility, all under Miami's sweltering heat.
From the opening whistle, the match unfolded slowly, marked by temperatures above 86 °F (30 °C) that weighed on both teams. The first half passed amid inaccuracies and few clear chances, although Real Madrid dominated possession more out of effort than fluidity. It was then, at the 34th minute, that Gonzalo García, a youth player making his debut in the starting line-up due to Mbappé's absence, broke the ice. He hinted at the talented promise of his generation, finishing off a well-executed counterattack by Rodrygo.
That goal invited more pace, but just seven minutes later, an unnecessary mistake by Raul Asencio inside the box led to a clear penalty for Al-Hilal. Rúben Neves didn't miss from the spot and made it 1-1 just before halftime.
The restart brought chances for both sides: Arda Güler nearly scored with a shot off the crossbar, and then Bocou –Yassine Bono– saved a header from García theguardian.com+3realmadrid.com+3huffingtonpost.es+3. The intensity increased, but the match never exploded into clear dominance, and the Saudi defense held firm.
In the final minutes, VAR awarded a second penalty to Madrid for a handball in the box. Federico Valverde took responsibility, but his shot was stopped by Bounou, the unexpected hero of the match espn.com. The match ended in a draw, a 1-1 that leaves Real Madrid with mixed feelings: good glimpses of transition toward Xabi Alonso's style, but also clear collective shortcomings and a lack of finishing under pressure.