Benitez on Arbeloa and Alonso ahead of Fulham v Chelsea
Rafael Benitez has spoken about his former Liverpool players Alvaro Arbeloa and Xabi Alonso ahead of Monday's Premier League fixture as Arbeloa's Fulham host Alonso's Chelsea. On the likelihood of them becoming managers he said: "Alonso, yes. Arbeloa, not really," adding, "For me, Arbeloa was a surprise."
The pair won the 2010 World Cup and two European Championships with Spain and secured domestic league and cup honours after leaving Liverpool to join Real Madrid. They played together for seven years at club level and shared the pitch 262 times for club and country. Both returned to England in July to begin their first Premier League managerial roles and now lead clubs whose stadiums are only two miles apart.
Benitez noted the former team-mates remain close off the field despite opposing roles on it, describing how they socialised, holidayed and spoke before Monday's match without discussing tactics. Arbeloa has called them "very good friends" while accepting they are "rivals when the game starts." The two men live near each other in Cobham, Surrey, and have children at the same school, the article says.
Benitez traced Alonso's managerial development back to his playing career and recent coaching spell in Germany, saying Alonso had experience of "coaching at a different level in a different country" after winning a league and cup double with Bayer Leverkusen in 2024. He praised Alonso's on-field intelligence and "vision", and recalled a 2009 free-kick at Anfield in which Alonso ignored an instruction to find the far post and instead set up Fernando Torres, adding: "He was someone who was always thinking."
On Arbeloa, Benitez highlighted his pathway from Real Madrid's academy, saying: "He was in Castilla [Real Madrid's academy], which was similar to how I started, and then he went to Madrid in special circumstances." Arbeloa had been promoted from Real Madrid B to replace Alonso when he was sacked by the Spanish giants in January last season, and Benitez noted Arbeloa's knowledge of the Premier League while observing that "his experience is shorter than Xabi's. We need to know how he can cope outside Real Madrid, which protects you in a way. Outside, you are on your own."
Benitez also reflected on the number of his former Liverpool players who have moved into coaching, saying he can name more than 20 and citing Wales boss Craig Bellamy among them. He pointed to Djimi Traore's role as an assistant coach at Seattle Sounders and recalled: "I sent him to the shower at half-time in the Champions League final [in 2005]." He added: "They always take something from you. Maybe two or three things they can use [as a coach], and I'm happy with that."
Out of work this summer at the age of 66, Benitez said he is "waiting for another challenge" and that his desire to "improve teams and players" remains. He noted he began coaching at Real Madrid more than 40 years ago, described his stint at Panathinaikos—where he secured the top-four finish he had been tasked with after taking the job in October but was still sacked in May—and said he remains a Uefa technical observer using social media, artificial intelligence and data in his approach. He confirmed: "I had some offers," added "Maybe it is a national team, as a lot of teams will change after the World Cup," and warned: "I know football now is more demanding. You have to be patient because, if not, if you change with the pressure of social media and change every seven months, then you don't have any project. That is the difficult thing."
Almost 20 years after Benitez brought them together at Anfield, the former team-mates will meet as managers when Fulham host Chelsea on Monday.
