"Very ambitious players" - Xabi Alonso namedrops Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema when asked how he'd manage Real Madrid superstars

New Real Madrid boss Xabi Alonso is all praise for his former superstar Los Blancos teammates Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, hailing the duo for their 'ambition'.

The trio played together at the Santiago Bernabeu during Alonso's five-year stay at the club between 2009 and 2014, winning a La Liga and UEFA Champions League title, among others, together.

Ahead of his first game as Los Blancos' new head coach, replacing the legendary Carlo Ancelotti, Alonso cited the examples of Ronaldo and Benzema when asked how he would manage superstars at the club, telling DAZN (via Madrid Xtra):

"Managing superstars? I've had experiences with players like Cristiano & Benzema ... and they're very ambitious players. You have to know how to hit the right keys and to maintain the ambition they have."

Ronaldo and Benzema are the club's two most prolific scorers, with 450 and 354 goals respectively and are bonafide Los Blancos superstars, having both arrived in the summer of 2009.

Los Blancos open their campaign in the new-look FIFA Club World Cup in the United States in Group H against Saudi Pro League giants Al-Hilal on Wednesday (June 18) at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. Pachuca and RB Salzburg are the other teams in the group.

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How did Xabi Alonso and Cristiano Ronaldo fare together at Real Madrid?

Real Madrid

As mentioned earlier, Cristiano Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso tasted success together during their five years together at Real Madrid more than a decade ago. They won five titles.

The duo registered 10 joint goal contributions, with Ronaldo - unsurprisingly - scoring the bulk of them (eight). In his last season at the club as a player, Alonso helped Los Blancos end their longstanding wait for the UEFA Champions League La Decima.

Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo left Madrid as their all-time top goalscorer in the summer of 2018, bagging a staggering haul of 450 goals in 438 games in nine seasons across competitions. He won two La Liga and four UEFA Champions League titles, including an unprecedented three in a row (2016-18).

Edited by Bhargav