Benitez: 'A lot of politics' at Real Madrid complicated Alonso's job

Rafael Benitez believes "there's a lot of politics involved" at Real Madrid, which he sees as one of the reasons for Xabi Alonso's departure as head coach of Los Blancos.

Alonso was named Madrid boss in June 2025 ahead of the Club World Cup, but left his role in January, with president Florentino Perez confirming the Spaniard was not sacked by the club. The now Chelsea boss won 24 of his 34 matches in charge at the Bernabeu (D4 L6), though he reportedly fell out with Vinicius Junior during his time in the Spanish capital.

Alonso had previously guided Bayer Leverkusen to an unbeaten domestic double in 2023-24 while also finishing runners-up in the Europa League in the same season, a record that made him one of Europe's most in-demand coaches.

Benitez, who coached Alonso at Liverpool, faced a strikingly similar situation at the Santiago Bernabeu, losing his job after just 24 games in charge (W16 D5 L3) despite topping their Champions League group, as he reportedly lost the support of the dressing room.

'Alonso likes to work, organise things'

Drawing direct parallels between their managerial spells at Madrid, Benitez told BBC Sport: "At Real Madrid, as you say, Xabi has many similarities to me.

"Alonso likes to work, organise things, and then talk to the players about what they want to do.

"But at Real Madrid, there's a lot of politics involved. So perhaps that's why it was more complicated."

Alonso started his Chelsea tenure in style with a 3-0 victory over Alvaro Arbeloa's Fulham, before the Blues' second London derby of the season ended 3-2 at Craven Cottage.

He became the first Chelsea manager to see his side score three goals in his Premier League debut since Maurizio Sarri in August 2018.