Reduced to ten very early in the meeting, Real Madrid suffered, but has shown character and a remarkable adaptability to Pachuca. A precious success, which allows the Merengues to sign their first victory in this club World Cup and the first also under the orders of Xabi Alonso.
Held in check by al-Hilal when they entered this club World Cup, Madrids were obliged to reassure themselves against the Mexicans of Pachucaon the occasion of the second meeting led by Xabi Alonso on the Real Madrid bench. But the evening quickly tilted in uncertainty with the expulsion of Raúl Asencio from the 7th minute of play. Reduced to ten very early in the meeting, the Meringues had to draw from their mental and collective resources to avoid sinking.
Fortunately for them, Xabi Alonso's tactical adjustments were paid. A more compact, more disciplined and more united Real Madrid managed to regain control of the game despite its numerical inferiority. Faced with a courageous and catchy team of Pachuca, the Madrid were able to show patience, mastery and a certain composure.
This success, far from having been a formality, was finally built in difficulty, but it turns out to be capital. It allows the Real Madrid almost to secure its qualification for the knockout stages and offers a real breath of optimism to launch the Xabi Alonso era under the best auspices. Back on Real Madrid's first victory in this club World Cup.
Xabi Alonso's decisive tactical adjustment
The early expulsion of Raúl Asencio in the 7th minute placed Real Madrid in an extremely complicated situation, with more than 80 minutes to play in inferiority. In this delicate context, the tactical adaptability of a coach is crucial, and Xabi Alonso knew how to take up this challenge perfectly. Faced with a Mexican Pachuca team which displayed a lot of intensity and aggressiveness, Xabi Alonso opted for a passage in 4-4-1 after the fresh break which turned out to be Capital.
This system allowed Real Madrid to densify the midfielder thanks to a line of four composed of Valverde, Arda Guller, Bellingham and Gonzalo, while retaining an offensive option with a single isolated striker that was Vinicius. The purpose of this device was to keep a compact and disciplined organization to better sting during offensive transitions. The team was thus able to defend in a low plûtot block, limiting the spaces for Pachuca and absorbing the opposing waves.
But beyond the defensive organization, thehe men of Xabi Alonso have also managed to manage the highlights and weakness of the match. This management of the game has shown real tactical maturity, especially on the capacity of players to show humility and patience in a difficult moment. Thanks to these adjustments, Real Madrid could not only contain Pachuca, but also gradually regain control of the game and lay the foundations to win this match.
Tops 💯 and flops ❌ of @LeoJobert1
✅ A courtesy XXL, Gonzalo again convincing and the boss match of Dean Huijsen, that's yes!
🤦♂️ Raúl Asencio stupidly expelled leaving his teammates at 10 against 11 the whole match, it's no!
🫵 And what would you have said? pic.twitter.com/nn939zTwoG
– The journal du Real (@lejournaldureal) June 22, 2025
A lucid Real Madrid in the management of strong and weak times
Reduced to ten from the 7th minute, Real Madrid could have completely collapsed in the face of a determined and without complex Pachuca team. The first half hour was a long torture for the men of Xabi Alonso, submerged by Mexican intensity. Banted, the Madrid has gone through an intense weak time. And yet, despite the pressure linked to numerical inferiority, they never broken.
If Real Madrid has managed to survive in this critical period, it owes it largely to Thibaut Courtois. The Belgian porter has multiplied decisive stops, ten in total, including two huge parades from the 18th minute, repelling the spectrum of a disaster scenario alone. But beyond individual exploits, it was the collective adaptation that made the difference. Without panicking, Meringues have readjusted their block, found a certain discipline and have adapted perfectly.
After the storm, Real Madrid has revealed the trend with lucidity. More patient, more compact, they waited for their moment to hit hard. In eight minutes, Bellingham and then Arda Güler materialized two magnificent collective movements, symbols of a team capable of moving from suffering to efficiency. This Real Madrid, even decreased, has shown that he could read the moments of a match, fold without breaking, adapt without panicking, and seize opportunities at the right time. A precious balance between resilience and realism for Xabi Alonso and his men.
Raúl Asencio, a start of the tournament to forget
The expulsion of Raúl Asencio was undoubtedly the significant event of this match, for all the bad reasons. From the 7th minute, in the position of the last defender, Asencio committed a fault of grown consequences, Putting his team inferiority for the rest of the match. This incident is unfortunately not an isolated case for the Spanish defender, who is experiencing the start of the World Cauchemardesque World Cup.
In the first match against al-Hilal, He had already been negatively involved by causing a penalty. This new failure increases the pressure on him and again highlights his excess of engagement in his surface, and he will now have to wake up to regain confidence and credibility. In addition to penalizing the team in this meeting against Pachuca, its expulsion leads to a suspension for the next decisive match against Salzburg.
ASENCIO will imperatively correct its errors and find a constant level of play if it wants to keep its place in the eleven of Xabi Alonso. Its difficult start could well serve as an electric shock for the revelation of the season at Real Madrid.
