Álvaro Arbeloa got off to a dismal start as the new coach of Real Madrid, seeing his team lose to second-division club Albacete 3-2 and drop out of the Copa del Rey in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
Albacete and Real Madrid met on Wednesday, January 14, 2026 (Copa del Rey), and the match finished 3-2.
Albacete had 22% of the possession against 78% for Real Madrid. The referee showed 4 yellow cards and 0 red cards in total.