Real Madrid – Mallorca: Three Out Of Three For Alonso’s Men Before International Break (2-1)

Three overturned goals and two others at the back of the net saw Real Madrid claim their third La Liga win in a row under Xabi Alonso's management. Los Blancos' transitional firepower prevailed; however, the defensive performance raised question marks that Alonso has to address during the international break. 

Tactical analysis and match report by Achraf Lamdarhri.

Xabi Alonso, as a new manager standing in the Santiago Bernabeu dugout, means different football than what Real Madrid used to in the past four seasons under Carlo Ancelotti. Nonetheless, ornamenting the Cibeles Fountain with titles at the end of the season must remain the common tradition between Alonso and his predecessors. The Club World Cup has proven that the road won't be paved with flowers, and instilling a new footballing regime will take time.

The Osasuna and Real Oviedo games saw Real Madrid play against the sternest low blocks, in which certain in-possession dynamics and players' connections were still missing to disrupt the opposition's defensive integrity. However, hunting in packs immediately following a possession loss was the dominant theme. According to Opta, Real Madrid registered 10.5 high turnovers per game, the highest record in La Liga.

Xabi Alonso made three changes to the formation that started Real Oviedo's game. Alexander Arnold and Éder Militão returned to feature in the main eleven alongside Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras. Aurélien Tchouaméni, Federico Valverde, and Arda Güler remained intact. Franco Mastantuono and Kylian Mbappé maintained their spots, whilst Vinicius Junior got the nod over Rodrygo on the left.

Jagoba Arrasate played with a 5-3-2 lineup . . .