Former Real Madrid goalkeeper Santiago Canizares launched a scathing critique of his former club after they suffered a humiliating 3-2 defeat to second-tier Albacete. The loss resulted in an early Round of 16 exit from the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night.
This defeat marked a disastrous debut for head coach Alvaro Arbeloa, who transitioned from the reserve team to replace Xabi Alonso earlier this week. The club dismissed Alonso following a narrow loss to Barcelona in the Supercopa de España final.
Real Madrid entered the match without star forward Kylian Mbappe, a decision that eventually proved costly. Speaking to Radio Cope, Canizares characterized the performance as a total systemic collapse. He expressed deep dissatisfaction with the boardroom decisions that led up to the match, suggesting that poor preparation increased the risk of such an upset. Despite the backlash, Arbeloa remained defensive, arguing that development often requires enduring significant setbacks.
Following their exits from both the Supercopa and the Copa del Rey, Los Blancos must now refocus their efforts on domestic and European silverware. The team currently trails Barcelona by four points in the LaLiga standings while preparing for the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League.
Canizares stated: “Even though I don’t want to say it, Real Madrid have absolutely failed. Arbeloa doesn’t want to use that word. I really agree with what he said, that you have to lose a lot before you can win. To achieve success, you have to experience failure many times. Today was a complete failure, and that’s clear. The management has been really poor all week. In football, even when things are done properly, things can still go wrong. If you don’t do them right, there’s a higher risk that problems might happen.”
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