Los Blancos made it to the tournament’s semi-finals but were soundly beaten 4–0 by Paris Saint-Germain.
The defeat marked Xabi Alonso’s first setback as head coach, dashing his hopes of clinching silverware in his debut outing. ..Continue Reading
Lucas Vazquez and Luka Modric both exited the Bernabeu on free transfers shortly after the loss, having extended their contracts solely for the duration of the event.
Modric has since signed a one-year deal with Serie A side AC Milan. On the incoming front, Real Madrid brought back Alvaro Carreras, a former academy talent, from Benfica.
Previously known as Fernandez, Carreras left Madrid in 2020 to join Manchester United, later going on loan to Preston, Granada, and Benfica.
United unexpectedly offloaded him to Benfica last summer, where he enjoyed an impressive season, prompting Real to secure his return for an initial €45 million.
Now, yet another product of Real’s youth setup has declared his intention to leave after being overlooked for the Club World Cup squad.
Alvaro Rodriguez, 20, was passed over by Alonso, who instead selected 18-year-old forward Gonzalo Garcia—who shined by scoring three times during the tournament.
Rodriguez, a Uruguay U-20 international, netted his first La Liga goal against Atletico Madrid in February 2023 and made eight appearances that season.
However, his game time dropped drastically, with just two outings the following year before he spent the 2024/25 season on loan at Getafe, where he registered three goals in 26 games.
Upon his return, Rodriguez wasn’t named in the Club World Cup roster and was excluded from Real’s initial pre-season training camp prior to their U.S. trip.
Speaking to Post United (via AS), Rodriguez explained: “I’m 20 years old. I think I have to leave. I can’t wait much longer for the first team.
“I’ll continue on my path with the goal of returning. My dream is to play for Real Madrid and I’m going to fight to achieve it, but to do that I have to leave first.
“I could have gone to the [Club] World Cup, but I understand why they gave Gonzalo the opportunity.”
Rodriguez added that, before he decided to join Real in 2020, he also had interest from Barcelona and Espanyol, as well as Manchester United: “My mother told my agent that I would only go to Madrid, and they hadn’t called me yet. I think United also called about me. My manager even gave me an English dictionary.”
