Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa blames himself for Copa del Rey exit

Real Madrid have been knocked out of the Copa del Rey, having been defeated by Albacete in their Round of 16 tie. Goals from Franco Mastantuono and Gonzalo Garcia were not enough, as Javi Villar and Jefte (x2) struck to seal a memorable win for the Segunda side.

As per Diario AS, head coach Alvaro Arbeloa spoke on the match to the media, as he took full responsibility for the defeat on his first game in charge.

“Always, at this club, a draw is bad, a tragedy. It’s painful and I’m sure all our fans are hurt. We know the difficulty, we saw it against Talavera. I’m responsible and guilty. As for the line-up, the changes. I can only thank the players. And to recover for Saturday.

“At yesterday’s press conference I said it. I’m not afraid of failure. And I understand anyone who wants to describe this defeat as a failure. Failure is on the road to success. It will make me better. It will make us all better. I’m not afraid of failure. I’ve failed many times in my life, with tougher eliminations than this one. To prepare for the next match with the utmost dedication.”

Arbeloa defends squad list

Arbeloa decided against calling up the likes of Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe for the match, but despite the defeat, he believes this call was correct.

“I was convinced that the list was the right one. The players that were there were a great team. I have a great squad, of talented players, differentials. With a new coach’s day it’s hard to do everything I’ve asked of them. We have many players to recover to their maximum physical level.”

Arbeloa: I don’t need to explain defeat to Florentino Perez

Arbeloa was also asked how he would “explain this defeat” to Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.

“He doesn’t need an explanation, he knows more about all this than I do. He knows what the history of this club is. We are a winning club. We have had painful defeats and here we only look forward.”

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