After the Madrid chaos, Arbeloa on the verge of a Premier League move
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Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 11.06.26. | 12:53
The Spanish coach did not exactly shine during his spell at Real Madrid, but a new opportunity is already waiting for him in the world's strongest league
Marco Silva has left, which means the Fulham manager’s job is now the most attractive opening in the Premier League. There are no other vacancies in England besides the West London club, so the list of candidates has been growing for some time — and one name stands out in particular. Out of nowhere, Alvaro Arbeloa received a call that could change his career.
He took over Real Madrid as a sacrificial lamb, stepping in after Xabi Alonso was sacked, and after every slip-up and failure he put the blame on his own shoulders. Now the time has come for him to cash in on everything he endured in the Spanish capital, potentially by taking charge of a Premier League side. Fulham’s board invited the former right-back to Craven Cottage for talks, to sound him out and see whether he could be the man to lead the London club.
It is hard to imagine him rejecting such an offer because, before Florentino Perez drafted him in as Real Madrid’s interim coach, he could hardly have dreamed of reaching football’s highest level so quickly. In modern football, anything is possible — including an inexperienced Spaniard, after an unsuccessful spell with the most decorated club in football history (at least in the traditional version of the sport), landing a job in the Premier League.
These days anything can happen, so do not be surprised if Arbeloa is standing on a Premier League touchline next season, because according to The Athletic, an agreement is very close.
As a reminder, Marco Silva left Fulham after five years to take over Benfica, where he will replace Jose Mourinho, who has just taken charge of Real Madrid. It is quite a managerial carousel: Arbeloa, the former coach of Real Madrid’s reserve side, took over the senior team on January 12 after Xabi Alonso was dismissed — and Alonso has now, ironically, taken charge of Chelsea, another West London club and Fulham’s biggest historical rival. Everything is symbolic, everything fits together, and that alone makes the story fascinating.
Arbeloa’s first match as Real Madrid manager came against second-division Albacete, when the Spanish giants were shockingly knocked out of the Copa del Rey. During his tenure, Real were eliminated in the Champions League quarter-finals by Bayern Munich, losing 6-4 on aggregate. They finished the season in second place, eight points behind champions Barcelona. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong — but now he may be able to put that behind him.
And it is not as if he is unfamiliar with English football, having played in the Premier League for both Liverpool and West Ham during his career.