Alvaro Arbeloa’s tenure as Real Madrid head coach began in disastrous fashion on Wednesday evening, as the Spanish giants were eliminated from the Copa del Rey following a shock 3-2 defeat to second-division side Albacete Balompié.
The loss at the Estadio Carlos Belmonte comes just days after Arbeloa was appointed to replace Xabi Alonso, who departed the club by mutual consent on Monday following a defeat in the Spanish Super Cup.
In his managerial debut, the former Liverpool and Real Madrid defender opted to rotate his squad heavily ahead of Saturday’s La Liga fixture against Levante. Arbeloa rested key figures including Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo, and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, handing starts to academy prospects Jorge Cestero and David Jimenez.
Despite the adverse result against a team sitting 17th in the Segunda División, Arbeloa remained defiant regarding his selection policy.
“If anyone is responsible and to blame for this outcome, it’s clearly me—the one who made the decisions regarding the line-up, how we wanted to play, the substitutions,” Arbeloa said. “I brought a team capable of winning.”
Addressing the pressure of losing his opening match, he added, “I’m not afraid of failure. Failure is part of the road to success. It will make me better, and it will make us all better.”
Despite enjoying nearly 80% possession in the first half, Madrid struggled to break down a disciplined Albacete defence. The hosts took the lead in the 42nd minute when defender Javi Villar rose above the Madrid backline to head home a corner from José Lazo.
Madrid responded immediately, levelling the scores in first-half stoppage time. Midfielder Franco Mastantuono, capitalising on a handling error by Albacete goalkeeper Raúl Lizoain, converted from close range to send the teams into the break at 1-1.
The second half remained deadlocked until the closing stages, prompting Arbeloa to introduce experienced heavyweights, including David Alaba, Eduardo Camavinga, and Dani Carvajal, in search of a winner. However, it was the changes from the opposition dugout that proved decisive.
Jefté Betancor, introduced by Albacete manager Alberto González, restored the home side’s lead in the final eight minutes. Although Madrid’s Gonzalo García briefly equalised again, Betancor struck his second goal of the night moments later to seal a historic victory and book Albacete’s place in the quarterfinals.
The defeat compounds a difficult week for Real Madrid. The transition from Xabi Alonso to Arbeloa was intended to stabilise the team following their Super Cup exit to Barcelona, but the desired immediate impact failed to materialise.
While Arbeloa pleaded for patience, noting he has “endured defeats harder than this one” during his playing career, the nature of the loss poses immediate questions for the new technical staff. Real Madrid must now regroup quickly before resuming their La Liga campaign against Levante on Saturday.
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