Xabi Alonso was desperate for Real Madrid to sign Arsenal midfielder Martin Zubimendi last summer.
The former Liverpool star took over at the Bernabeu last May but his reign in charge lasted less than eight months, parting ways with Los Blancos on Monday in the wake of their Spanish Super Cup final defeat to Barcelona.
He leaves the Spanish capital with Real sat second in La Liga, four points behind their arch-rivals with the best win percentage out of any previous head coaches at the club over the last decade.
Real made three additions to their defence during last summer’s transfer window with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras joining the club alongside highly-rated Argentine attacker Franco Mastantuono.
Alonso however was eager for the club to sign a midfielder in the mould of Toni Kroos, who retired from football in 2024 after a decade of excellence at the club.
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Alonso told the Real board a signing of that profile would be fundamental to his success at the club, identifying Zubimendi as the best man for the job.
While the new Real boss was desperate to sign the then-Real Sociedad star, Arsenal had long-standing interest having struck an agreement to bring him to the Emirates in January 2025.
While Arsenal remained confident he would join, AS report there was a small window where Real had the chance to convince him to stay in Spain with Alonso’s representatives reaching out to Zubimendi’s.
The report claims Zubimendi ‘waited a few days’ to see if there was a possibility to join Alonso at Real before making his final decision
The Spanish giants hesitated however, and by the time they did make their move it was too late with a £60m move to Arsenal finalised.
AS add the club were never ‘fully convinced’ despite Alonso’s pleas, with the head coach privately complaining to his staff that Zubimendi was a missing piece of the puzzle.
Real boast the options of Jude Bellingham, Ernesto Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni but feared the side lacked a player to effectively anchor the midfield and create from deep.
Real’s loss has been Arsenal’s gain with Zubimendi one of the signings of the season, effortlessly slotting into Mikel Arteta’s midfield.
The 26-year-old has started 20 of Arsenal’s 21 Premier League matches, playing the full 90 minutes in 15 of those games.
His presence has also enabled his midfield partner Declan Rice to hit new levels this season with the England international recently paying tribute to his ‘unreal’ teammate.
‘I think don’t underestimate to come from La Liga to come into this team,’ Rice told Sky Sports after the win over Bournemouth.
‘He’s not the biggest player or the strongest, but his brain, the way it works, allows the team to function in such a good way.
‘He’s been unreal. He’s played so many minutes for us, the way he gets on the ball, obviously he’s Spain’s No.6 at the minute and rightly so, you see the quality he brings, the calmness, the composure, the way he thinks.
‘It’s been great to play with him. I’m learning a lot and we’ve built a really good partnership, so long may that continue because we’re both young, we’re both fresh and we want to keep building that together.’
