Is Real Madrid ready to snatch the La Liga title from Barcelona?

Although Madrid is used to success and not winning a trophy in any year is abnormal, some of their fans are genuinely excited to have Xabi Alonso as their manager.

His arrival means they now have a chance to brag about one of their former players leading the team to success, which is something Barcelona often enjoys.

The Catalans can count on so many of their former players who returned to the club to lead them to success, including Luis Enrique and Pep Guardiola.

Madrid has had its fair share of heroes returning to the club and making it a successful team, with Zinedine Zidane doing so during his two spells as their coach.

The Frenchman remains unattached, and some fans expected him to return as the replacement for Carlo Ancelotti in the summer.

However, following his exploits as the manager of Bayer Leverkusen, Madrid opted to make Alonso their coach instead.

Alonso did the impossible and made so many people buy Bayer Leverkusen tickets when he was in Germany.

If he can replicate the success he enjoyed in Germany as the gaffer of Madrid and make them go an entire domestic season unbeaten, it would be impressive.

Last term, Madrid suffered so much at the hands of Barcelona, with Hansi Flick’s team proving unstoppable in most of the months during that campaign.

The German has not bolstered his team much, with Marcus Rashford arriving as the only high-profile addition to his squad.

Madrid has improved its defence, but in midfield and attack, they have not felt the need to make many changes to their group.

What is the first issue Alonso needs to address at Madrid?

For a top club like Madrid, the mindset of the players is that of champions, and the manager hardly has problems motivating the group.

Everyone who steps on the pitch to play for the team knows how important it is to win, so Alonso will be working with players who have a superb mindset.

However, there is a reason that Ancelotti failed to find success at the club last season, and there are problems that contributed to that.

Apart from the brilliance of Barcelona, Madrid looked disjointed as the many egos in the dressing room got in the way of their performances.

Although they eventually solved the Vinicius-Mbappe positional problem, it was still clear that too many players were after personal records and gains on the pitch.

This led to them struggling to help each other on the pitch in so many matches, so Alonso must bring back some harmony on the pitch.

The club has to give him the power to pick the players who will stick to the plan and ensure the manager has his way.

Madrid signs players for coaches to use, but they have to allow Alonso to also pick targets who will be loyal to him and help him carry out his plans in matches.

This will go a long way to help him succeed as their coach this season and in the future.

Can Barcelona stay on top in the duel between the clubs?

Madrid and Barcelona faced each other four times last season, but it was an ultimate lesson on how to beat a top club each time, as Barcelona won all four games.

The Copa del Rey final was decided in extra time, but Barcelona still ensured that they enjoyed a clean sweep over their top rivals.

The Catalans have one of the world’s best coaches, and Flick has made a new generation of supporters buy more Barcelona tickets.

However, their summer has been a quiet one as they have struggled to find the players who can join their squad and significantly strengthen it.

After doing their best to sign a winger, following Athletic Club and Liverpool’s decision to make it impossible for them to sign Nico Williams and Luis Diaz, the Catalans have signed Marcus Rashford on loan from Manchester United.

Joan Garcia has also joined them, with Marc-André ter Stegen no longer being considered their first-choice goalie.

They also signed Roony Bardghji from FC Copenhagen to bolster their attack. These new additions do not inspire much confidence for a team that wants to win the top trophies.

Barca’s struggles to strengthen their squad could be a blessing for Madrid as they could topple the Catalans, but that would be easier said than done.

Will Madrid’s new signings improve their team enough to win titles?

As Barcelona struggles to add new stars to their squad, Madrid has done just that.

They have been active on the market, and they added Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dean Huijsen, Álvaro Carreras, and Franco Mastantuono to their squad.

These players have arrived to strengthen a defence that seemed to be a problem spot for them last season.

Madrid has also promoted their Club World Cup hero, Gonzalo García, to their first team, and it promises to be an exciting campaign for him.

Alonso has signed these players not because they are all better than the options he met in Madrid, but they would help him have some say in the squad.

Also, the competition from the new stars would make the others sit up and improve, which is why they have strengthened the group.

It is difficult to tell if Madrid now has a stronger team than Barcelona, but the embarrassing outcomes of their head-to-head clashes last season cannot repeat themselves this term.

How can Madrid win La Liga this season?

Just like every competition that they compete in, Real Madrid is favourite to win the La Liga title this season.

Because they are the defending champions, most people will say that Barcelona are the main favourite, but fans who buy Real Madrid tickets expect their team to be champions by the summer of 2026.

Los Blancos can be champions, and they simply have to be more consistent than they were last season to achieve that goal.

They do not even need to improve on their head-to-head record against Barcelona to be champions.

If they lose both matches against Barca and win 90 per cent of the other matches, they will be champions.

However, for the sake of bragging rights, their fans would expect them to win some of the matches against Barcelona.

What Alonso needs to focus on is building a team that does not know when it is beaten, just like his Bayer Leverkusen team, which came back to win so many matches from the brink during their unbeaten campaign.