PSG Humiliates Real Madrid, Xabi Alonso's Strange Decision Disasters

NEW JERSEY, THURSDAY — Real Madrid is approaching the semifinals of the Club World Cup in a state of confusion. They arrived late in New Jersey a day earlier due to a delayed flight, and "Los Blancos" performed unconvincingly, suffering a heavy defeat of 0-4 against Paris Saint-Germain at Metlife Stadium, New Jersey, United States, Thursday (10/7/2025) early morning WIB.

The defeat was also influenced by coach Xabi Alonso's strange decision in selecting the starting lineup.

The one-hour flight delay due to bad weather seemed to signal bad news for Real ahead of the semifinals. During the Club World Cup, Real is based in Florida, prompting management to decide to return there instead of remaining in New Jersey after defeating Borussia Dortmund in the quarterfinals.

Although it was only for one hour, the flight delay had significant implications, resulting in the cancellation of a series of press conference activities the day before facing PSG.

Real Madrid's misfortunes apparently continued after that. What was expected to be a tight semifinal match ended in an anti-climax.

Let alone putting up a fight, Real struggled immensely to take the ball from PSG players. Throughout the match, Real recorded only 32 percent possession and 255 accurate passes. This number pales in comparison to PSG, which dominated with 68 percent possession and 631 accurate passes.

So disoriented were they that the central defensive duo of Real, Raul Asencio and Antonio Ruediger, made a fatal blunder within the first 10 minutes of the match. A very poor ball control from Asencio allowed the agile PSG forward, Ousmane Dembele, to seize the ball, leading to a goal by Fabian Ruiz.

Three minutes later, it was Ruediger's turn to be caught off guard, allowing Dembele to capitalize on the opportunity to score and double PSG's lead.

"The beginning of the match had a significant impact on us. Everything became very difficult for us from the 10th minute. Being two goals down so quickly, we knew this match would be very challenging," said Alonso in an interview with DAZN after the match.

Pairing Asencio and Ruediger may be the strangest decision made by Alonso. The former Bayer Leverkusen coach reverted to a four-defender formation in a 4-3-3 scheme. In fact, he had previously implemented a three-defender formation, similar to when he was still managing Leverkusen, in the last match.

In a formation with three defenders, Aurelien Tchouameni, who plays as a defensive midfielder, took on a more withdrawn role as a central defender, flanked by Ruediger and Dean Huijsen. The absence of Trent Alexander-Arnold due to injury and Huijsen due to a red card in the previous match likely influenced Alonso's decision to revert to a four-defender formation.

Facing PSG with four defenders is not a good idea. This means that only two defenders will be engaged in combat against the fast-footed attackers of PSG such as Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia during transition situations.

The weakness was evident in PSG's third goal, which was again contributed by Ruiz. During PSG's quick transition, two Real defenders failed to cover Achraf Hakimi's movement, resulting in chaos that led to the goal. In addition to the odd player selections, Asencio and Ruediger also performed below average, failing to maintain focus despite the match having just begun.

"From my perspective on the field, I see that we often arrive late. We lose our position, and they are quick. We are never close enough to them, and when they find space, everything becomes difficult," said Real goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois.

In addition to the strange player selections in the defense line, Alonso also made an unusual decision in the attacking position. In previous matches, he did not force the simultaneous play of Vinicius Junior, Kylian Mbappe, and Gonzalo Garcia. This time, Alonso appeared greedy by fielding all three of them together from the very beginning.

Garcia, who usually plays as a central striker, appeared very awkward in his new role on the right wing. Mbappe was also unable to do much as a central striker due to being pressured immediately when in possession of the ball. Meanwhile, Vinicius was rendered ineffective on the left wing, managing only one shot.

"Am I wrong for playing so many attackers today? Without a doubt. This is not what we expected," Alonso said when asked about his strange decision.

At a time when Real's attacking line was blunt, PSG was able to play with ease against Real. As if leading by three goals was not enough, PSG further extended their advantage with a goal from Goncalo Ramos three minutes before the match ended. Ramos' goal struck at Real's authority as PSG players could easily dismantle their defense.

"It is always difficult to play matches like this against Real Madrid. I think we started the match very well, and we are satisfied with our performance," said PSG Coach Luis Enrique, as quoted by Al Jazeera.

PSG has a great opportunity to secure their fourth title this season by advancing to the final. In the final, PSG will face Chelsea, who defeated Fluminense in the other semifinal match.