Real Madrid's call to Karanka… to replace Alberto Toril in the women's team

In the midst of a change in the men's first team, with the departure of Carlo Ancelotti and the arrival of Xabi Alonso , Real Madrid surprised last week with a statement announcing that Alberto Toril "has ended his time as coach of Real Madrid Women."

The Cordoba-born coach had one more year left on his contract , as he strangely renewed it on June 29, 2024, until June 30, 2026 , so the question is whether it was he who decided to end his time at the helm of the white team or if, on the contrary, it was Real Madrid who dismissed him from one day to the next.

As this is very difficult to know in a club where, unlike with storms, you hear the thunder first and then the lightning strikes, the only thing that is certain is that, after four years in which he has not won a single title , Toril is no longer the coach of Real Madrid .

Her departure has been through the back door , without being able to say goodbye to the players, who have not been seen very active in bidding farewell. It seems that if they weren't eager to see her, they must have liked her. This is also not surprising, given the complicated relationship between the former Real Madrid coach and the sporting director, Ana Rossell .

The replacement that was not planned

However, the fact that Real Madrid is taking so long to sign and, consequently, announce Toril's replacement suggests that something strange happened and that everything was rushed through at the last minute. In this context, and of course without ruling out the possibility that Begoña Sanz's section is considering other options, we must include the offer that, according to what this newspaper has learned from well-informed sources, has been made to Aitor Karanka .

Yes, the former Real Madrid assistant manager under José Mourinho has been approached by the club chaired by Florentino Pérez . However, Karanka, who, after leaving Valdebebas, managed Middlesbrough (169 matches), Nottingham Forest (52), Birmingham City (38), Granada (21) and Maccabi Tel Aviv (23), has not considered such a possibility.

Probably because he is aware of the difficulty involved in the change to women's football , no matter how much Real Madrid it is and in a competition as undemanding as the F League continues to be. In any case, as reported by several media outlets, the white club already contacted the Basque coach when they asked him for help in the signing of Jude Bellingham , with whom he coincided at the aforementioned Birmingham.

According to those who know Real Madrid from the inside, Karanka's choice fits with the idea that the new women's first team coach should be someone who knows the club. Although, of course, given the still short history of this section, this isn't so straightforward, hence Toril's dismissal or resignation—the truth will come out one day—has caught them off guard.

Return to 'Mourinhismo' and Raúl and Casillas leave

Furthermore, following the signing of Xabi Alonso for the men's first team, the promotion of Álvaro Arbeloa to Real Madrid Castilla following Raúl's departure , and the addition of Diego López as second-team goalkeeping coach, Karanka is another manager closely linked to Mourinho's time under the Portuguese national team. If not the most, having been his faithful squire in extremely difficult situations to manage. Recently, Aitor launched a summer camp in the Madrid town of Villanueva del Pardillo.

It may be a coincidence, but with the aforementioned departure of Raúl and the less-discussed departure of Iker Casillas , in his case from the Real Madrid Foundation, which he joined in December 2020 as deputy general manager, it's starting to feel like Real Madrid is experiencing a kind of return to the past . Although in reality what they need to do is think about the future. Something that Xabi Alonso will surely do and that the coach - or perhaps female coach - who takes Toril's place should do.