Report: Former Liverpool player set to take new coaching job at Real Madrid next season
Yesterday at 03:00 PM
Liverpool players of the Rafa Benitez generation are starting to make small steps in the world of coaching.
Benitez was a meticulous coach and although the Spaniard did not win as much as he perhaps should have with the Reds, he clearly inspired many of his players to follow in his footsteps.
The most high-profile of Benitez’s pupils is of course Xabi Alonso. Alonso has praised the impact Benitez had on him while playing for him at Liverpool and the former midfielder looks set for a huge career in the dugout.
Another who has tried his hand with less luck is of course Steven Gerrard. It remains to be seen whether the Liverpool academy graduate can return to a better level in management.
Meanwhile, Dirk Kuyt is a current top division manager, while Martin Skrtel was named as a sporting director recently.
There are others coming up through the ranks, too. Javier Mascherano and Fernando Torres, for example, are youth team coaches with the potential to progress higher in the future. Another currently in charge of an underage side – and now set for a promotion – is former right-back Alvaro Arbeloa.
Alvaro Arbeloa set for big Real Madrid promotion
Arbeloa was not at Liverpool for a long time. The former Spain international spent two-and-a-half years at Anfield, playing 98 times, before heading home to boyhood club Real Madrid.
From there, Arbeloa made the most of his time at Real, spending seven years as a regular in the squad. He won two Champions League and one La Liga title with Los Blancos.
After a brief spell at West Ham, Arbeloa then retired and has been in charge of various youth teams at the Bernabeu since 2020.
Currently, the 41-year-old is coaching the club’s Juvenil A class, which is more or less the U19s.
READ MORE: Joel Matip makes interesting move into coaching after leaving Liverpool
However, according to Spanish outlet Marca, Arbeloa is soon set for a promotion.
They report that with the legendary Raul set to step down as head coach of the club’s Castilla reserve team, Arbeloa will be the man to replace him at the end of the season.
This is a big deal for the former Liverpool man, who will take over the team in the Primera Federacion, the third tier of Spanish football.
Alvaro Arbeloa set to renew Fernando Torres rivalry
Plenty of Liverpool fans will already be familiar with Arbeloa’s work in the Real Madrid youth teams.
That’s because he was involved in a touchline altercation with former Reds teammate Torres in a game against Atletico Madrid in 2023.
The pair have since faced each other again and look to be all friends again, but it did demonstrate that the fierce Madrid rivalry trickles all the way through both clubs.
And from next season it looks likely that Arbeloa and Torres will meet once again. Torres took over at Atletico B this term and could well be still there by the time Arbeloa takes up his position with the other half of Madrid.
With the two teams set to play in the same division, things could get heated once again.
