That performance earned high praise from Xabi Alonso. "I feel like he wants even more, you can see it on the pitch. I don't know if it's because of the number 10, but it's obvious," the Spanish coach

Three months after they bid farewell to Carlo Ancelotti, Los Blancos returned to the Santiago Bernabéu with Alonso on the touchline. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Álvaro Carreras and Dean Huijsen joined the manager as a new-look Real Madrid kicked off their 2025–26 campaign in front of a sea of white shirts.