Friday was the first day that Xabi Alonso had all his players available before traveling to the Club World Cup. Kylian Mbappé, Aurelién Tchouameni, Luka Modric, Jude Bellingham, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Dean Huijsen joined the demanding work being done by the Real Madrid squad to learn new concepts, improve their performance, and win the FIFA tournament. It is a tournament in which we will see the new role that the Tolosa-born coach wants to give to Bellingham, who is destined for greatness but is currently hampered by injury.
Xabi Alonso reaffirms his faith in Bellingham
During his presentation with Real Madrid, Xabi Alonso gave clues about what his Real Madrid would be like, and he made it very clear what role he wanted Bellingham to play in the team, as he is a player who makes a difference and who will play as a midfielder for him. “Jude can be special almost anywhere because he is special. His emergence is that of a player for the ages at Real Madrid. He will be fundamental for the club’s future projects and is at a good point in his career to work with him and become a key player. I see him as a midfielder and, with the potential he has, I want him to be as efficient as possible. That will be one of the steps we will try to take with him.”
After days of work and with the arrival of the English player at training on Friday, Xabi Alonso maintains the idea that Jude Bellingham will be more of a midfielder than an attacking midfielder. According to Rubén Martín, a journalist for Diario AS, the Tolosa-born coach believes that Bellingham should take on an important role in the wide areas of the pitch when it comes to building play.
An injury that complicates everything
The player’s role will be put to the test in the Club World Cup, but after that there is a problem on the table. The Englishman is expected to undergo shoulder surgery after Real Madrid’s participation in the Club World Cup. After two seasons of problems, both the player and the club have decided that the best option is to go under the knife to have his shoulder operated on. This would mean that the Englishman would miss the first part of the season. There is no set timeframe, but there is talk of up to three months.
Bellingham’s shoulder problems date back to late 2023 in a match against Rayo. The English player fell badly and suffered severe pain in that area of his body. Since then, the Englishman has repeatedly shown obvious problems in actions where he has had to force the pace and go into tackles against opponents.
His role in the signing of Trent Alexander-Arnold
In recent hours, Bellingham has also been the subject of much discussion following the arrival of Trent Alexander-Arnold at Real Madrid. His compatriot was presented on Thursday and the friendship that unites them has been portrayed by various media outlets as key to the full-back’s arrival, but Trent has been clear on the matter, laughing off his teammate’s importance. “We’ve talked. Things haven’t been the way people think, but we’ve talked. It’s normal when you play for the national team to want to know what Real Madrid is like. In fact, many of my teammates ask him questions. But there are a lot of people who think that Jude played an important role in me being here… and the truth is that Real Madrid needs no introduction. This was a huge opportunity, it was the right time, and I had the chance to make it happen.”