Real Madrid’s Coaching Dropping-Guide: The Shortlist, the Sacks, and the Mbappe Dream
9 March 2026
Real Madrid's Coaching Dilemma Deepens
Real Madrid has yet to settle on its new head coach for the upcoming season, and the club remains on the hunt for a technical director capable of returning them to trophy winning form.
They dismissed Xabi Alonso after losing the Spanish Super Cup to Barca in January, and installed Álvaro Arbeloa as interim boss until the end of the season.
Results under Arbeloa have been inconsistent: Madrid were eliminated early from the Copa del Rey, and sit four points behind leaders Barcelona in La Liga.
Key Candidates on Madrid's Shortlist
Interest on the global stage is growing, with names like Jurgen Klopp, Massimiliano Allegri, and Mauricio Pochettino appearing in the mix.
ESPN reports Madrid has Pochettino on a short list of candidates for next season, and that they could offer Arbeloa another role at the club, or a return to his Castilla post.
Madrid is weighing several options to lead the new sporting project, and Pochettino is among the coaches held in high regard by president Florentino Perez.
Speculation about a Pochettino return to Tottenham this summer persists, even though his current club has endured a troubled season and battles to avoid relegation in the English Premier League.
The USA national team coach, under contract through this summer's World Cup, had previously been linked to Real Madrid after steering Tottenham Hotspur to the 2019 Champions League final.
A longtime La Liga expert since his Espanyol days, Pochettino has also coached stars at Spurs, PSG, and Chelsea, and Madrid's fascination includes the prospect of mentoring Mbappe for two seasons in Paris.
Mbappé collected three trophies with PSG under his guidance — Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, and the Trophée des Champions — but failed to win Europe’s top prize, exiting in the 2021 semi finals to Manchester City and in the 2022 last-16 to Real Madrid.
That is one of the core assets Madrid values: the chance to sign Mbappé for two seasons as part of a long term project. The club regards his potential presence as a centerpiece of the next era.
Punchline: If this coaching saga were a Netflix show, Madrid would already be in season three, with plot twists funded by rumors and a cliffhanger named Mbappe.
Punchline 2: Real Madrid will probably win the trophy for “Most Promoted Coach Without an Official Announcement” before naming a boss, but hey, memes are the real champions of social media anyway.
