When Real Madrid secured the return of Álvaro Carreras for nearly €50 million, the expectations surrounding the defender were sky-high. The club saw him as a long-term investment, a player capable of anchoring the left side of their defense for years to come.
At one point, Carreras appeared destined to become one of the breakout stars of the season. Under former manager Xabi Alonso, he quickly cemented his place as a key figure in the squad. Alonso placed significant trust in the young Spaniard, giving him regular minutes in high-stakes matches and relying on him consistently.
A look at the numbers underlines just how prominent Carreras was during Alonso’s tenure. He featured in 24 of 28 matches, starting 23 of them—only one appearance came off the bench. But the narrative shifted dramatically when Álvaro Arbeloa took over in January.
Though Carreras didn’t vanish entirely from the lineup, his influence steadily waned under the new boss. Under Arbeloa, he played 14 matches in total, starting 13 and coming on as a substitute once. On the surface, these numbers don’t seem alarming. However, the drop in his involvement rate tells a different story: under Alonso, Carreras appeared in nearly 86% of matches; under Arbeloa, that figure plummeted to around 56%.
The turning point reportedly came around Real Madrid’s clash against Mallorca. At that time, Madrid were still mathematically in the La Liga title race, and Carreras had been relatively involved, featuring in 12 of Arbeloa’s first 18 matches. But after that, his role almost completely evaporated. Across the next seven fixtures, the defender featured only twice, with his playing time collapsing.
Since then, Arbeloa has increasingly turned to other options in defense. Although Carreras is expected to stay and has expressed willingness to prove himself next season, he might find some relief in knowing that Arbeloa will not continue as manager for the 2026/27 campaign.