Real Madrid's debacle, a sensational elimination in the round of 16 of the Spanish King's Cup against second division team Albacete (3:2).
It was Alvaro Arbeloa's first game in charge of Madrid after parting ways with Xabi Alonso, and that's just one of the reasons why this match and historic defeat resonated in the Spanish media.
Real Madrid lost two trophies in a few days (losing to Barcelona in the Super Cup final on Sunday), changed their coach, and haven't been in this situation in a long time.
Leading Spanish newspaper "Marca" headlined its report from the match with: "This Real is truly shameful."
In another article, in a commentary on the match, it is concluded that Real Madrid players will be booed on Saturday, when they play Levante at home in the Spanish league.
"The worst thing that could have happened to Real Madrid was that after the first 20 minutes of the match, the fog lifted from the Carlos Belmonte stadium. This exposed the shameful play that had knocked them out of the King's Cup. The crisis at Real Madrid took on extraordinary proportions, with two trophies lost in three days, one coach sacked, and another leaving work mortally wounded," reports Marka.
It is pointed out that Arbeloa took a risk, rested four key players (Mbappe, Courtois, Bellingham, Rodrigo), and lost one trophy.
"And to think that this team can win La Liga or the Champions League is wishful thinking," the Spanish newspaper states.
"The reality is that the players, not all of them, but the vast majority, were not thrilled with the new coach either. They didn't expect a miracle from switching from Xabi to Arbeloa overnight, but they at least hoped for a change in the players' attitude. None of that. The only change was in the coach's behavior."
Arbeloa surprised everyone with his performance at the press conference, he was overly indulgent towards the players, whom he even thanked.
Throughout the game, Real Madrid was lackluster in attack, transparent in defense, led by Vinicius, who did not stand out.
"He played as if Xabi Alonso was still on the bench. Valverde didn't offer anything either. And Mastantuono, whose only bright spot was a goal, barely raised his rating. From 0 to 1, and very generously. His game was incredibly bad. They return to the 'Bernabeu' on Saturday. They have a tough time ahead of them," it states.
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