Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa met for the first time in Liverpool in 2007. Before that, the Spanish midfielder was in Real Sociedad, while his future teammate was in Deportivo La Coruna. Since then, they played in 262 games together for Liverpool, Real Madrid and Spain. But what is more interesting is that Arbeola basically followed Alonso almost wherever he went, and that trend which started in 2007 continued until the present time. Both players spent two years at Anfield together (Xabi arrived in 2004) and then went to Real Madrid in 2009. Xabi was the first to leave Spain again, as he moved to Bayern Munich in 2014. Alonso didn’t follow him and that was the only time they weren’t together in the same club/country as he went to West Ham to finish his career.Chelsea strikers in high demand: EPL clubs lock horns over Delap, Jackson on Spanish giants' radarBy the end of May 2017 both players finished their playing career. Alonso decided to become the coach and in 2018 took his first coaching steps in Madrid’s academy, helming the under-13 side. Two years later, Arbeloa arrived at La Fabrica to take charge at the exact same level. And while Alonso went on to coach Sociedad B team and Bayer Leverkusen, Arbeola stayed in Madrid as the Real B team coach. And then Alonso came back to the be the first team manager. They talked every day for six months, exchanging information and ideas before Alonso’s dream job ended prematurely. His successor? Arbeola. But former defender shared the same fate as his pal and was let go in May 2026. 🗣️ Álvaro Arbeloa on Alonso’s Chelsea:“Alonso wants to dominate through possession and be aggressive with the ball. He’s a very complete manager, so it won’t be easy. We’ll need to be competitive and fight from the first minute to the final whistle.”~ @FulhamFC pic.twitter.com/1RUOVSlKBh— unique (@im_uniqque) August 23, 2026 This strange life path between the two continued in England, where both men are now managers and will face each other tonight, when Fulham face Chelsea. “Of course you can have a relation, but once on the pitch, no friends, no past. It's just the 90 minutes that we are playing, fighting for each club and after it's another thing” said Alonso when asked about Arbeola. Their former coach Rafa Benitez admitted he didn’t expect Arbeola to become a coach but is eager to see what he can do. “Alvaro knows the Premier League, but his experience is shorter than Xabi’s. We have to see how he copes with the responsibilities away from Madrid, which in some ways protects you. When you are away from there, you are left to fend for yourself. As for Alonso, he has coaching experience at another level and in different countries, and he was also a Bundesliga champion” Benítez added.PREMIER LEAGUE – MATCHDAY 1FridayArsenal – Coventry 3-0 (2-0)/Havertz 15, Saka 23, Odegaard 49/SaturdayHull – Manchester United 2-0 (2-0)/Ajayi 17, Mendy 38/Everton – Crystal Palace 2-0 (1-0)/Dewsbury-Hall 42, Barry 53/Ipswich – Sunderland 2-1 (1-1)/Emersonn 24, Clarke 90 – Angulo 39/Nottingham Forest – Leeds 0-1 (0-0)/Stach 88/Brentford – Tottenham 3-0 (2-0)/Lewis-Potter 12, Janelt 33, Kayode 49/SundayBrighton – Aston Villa 4-0 (4-0)/Lindelof 8(og), De Cuyper 18, Hinshelwood 30, 31/Manchester City -Bournemouth 2-1 (0-1)/Guehi 84, Gvardiol 90+1 – Tavernier 26/Newcastle – Liverpool 2-2 (1-0)/Elanga 5, Willock 57 – Gakpo 55, Szoboszlai 90' +9 (p)/Monday22.00: (3.70) Fulham (3.80) Chelsea (2.00)***odds are subject to change***