WHAT HAPPENED?
All-action midfielder Bellingham was often deployed as a No.10 or deep-lying forward by former Los Blancos boss Carlo Ancelotti, allowing him to surge into the final third and register 38 goals across two seasons at Santiago Bernabeu.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
World Cup winner Alonso has, however, returned to the Spanish capital this summer and brought a new approach with him. He has admitted that Bellingham will be sitting deeper in his plans.
GettyWHAT BELLINGHAM SAID
The Three Lions superstar is happy to do whatever job is required of him, with the 22-year-old explaining what his manager is after: “With this new style we want to play between the lines, we want to have control, but Xabi says we shouldn’t lose the ability to attack the goal when we have the opportunity to speed up the game - we want to take advantage of that. We want to have control during the game.”
Next Match
DID YOU KNOW?
Bellingham added on working under ex-Liverpool, Real and Bayern Munich midfielder Alonso, after seeing him deliver Bundesliga title glory in his previous coaching post at Bayer Leverkusen: “Xabi is a very nice person, he has a great way of talking to the players. For me, the thing that attracts me about him is his energy towards football. He is very active. He is moving, he gets involved so he can see and feel the game better. When you see a coach like that, you feel drawn to his energy.”
GettyWHAT NEXT FOR REAL MADRID?
Bellingham and Co are currently on FIFA Club World Cup duty, as they endeavour to open Alonso’s reign with a major trophy win, and will face Serie A giants Juventus in the last-16 of that competition on Tuesday.