Find a role for Trent Alexander-Arnold, get Vinicius Jr cooking & the six improvements Xabi Alonso will have to make to get Real Madrid back to the top

Yep, we've heard this before. Alonso always plays three at the back with two attacking midfielders and one central striker. It is a good thing, then, that Madrid have more than two consistently fit centre-backs, numerous attacking midfield options, and a proper No.9. Ironically, Alonso couldn't have walked into a worse-tailored squad for the system that worked so well for him at Bayer Leverkusen.

He has since ditched the doctrine of Ruben Amorim, and insisted that his team will be more about vibe, effort and structure than the exact positions of the 11 guys on the field. That's a fair assessment of things. Tactical principles tend to matter far more than formations these days. If Alonso wants effort, pressure and control, that is far more relevant than where Kylian Mbappe starts.

However, there has to be some sense to all of this. Fluidity is cool and fun, but not everyone can be fully interchangeable. So, he will need to figure out how he sets all of this up. Against Al-Hilal, Madrid started in a 4-3-3 before moving into more of a 3-4-3 in the second half. Neither really worked, and they were far too easily cut open by an inferior side throughout. There are some caveats here, considering injuries, fitness, and the fact that it was 100 degrees in Miami. But there needs to be a clearly established formation from here on out.

Time for the fun debate: is it fair to say that signing Alexander-Arnold was a Florentino Perez "because I can" move? This transfer had clearly been in the works for some time. Trent, we now know, had been learning Spanish for months. He had been rejecting contract offers for just shy of a year. The man wanted to go to the Bernabeu.

But did he know who he was going to be playing for? And, more importantly, does the new guy want him? Alonso hasn't exactly been full of praise for Trent, offering only that "he has gone from less to more" after his underwhelming debut. The issue here is the fact that Trent was very, very good in a very, very specific system. Sure, his role changed here and there under Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, but the German always knew how to bring the absolute best out of a world-class talent. Arne Slot did a similar thing at times - but also didn't mind utilising Connor Bradley when needed.

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Is Alonso in the same camp as Slot? He has been handed a supreme talent here. He makes infinite sense as a right-wing-back with cover behind him. But as a pure right-back there are undeniable defensive deficiencies that Madrid don't have the midfield nous to paper over. It's a good problem to have, but one that surely needs monitoring.

Carlo Ancelotti's genius at Real Madrid was that he always seemed to know the right thing to say. He could slam players when he needed to, and praise them when they deserved it. But ultimately, he kept the Madrid voodoo in place. This is a club that runs off financial power and relentless self belief - with some world-class footballers sprinkled in to hold it all together. Ancelotti got that, and will go down as one of Real's great managers for doing so.

But does Alonso understand? Certainly, he knows the pressure, but does he have the - as the kids say - 'aura' to make it all happen? That's unclear so far. Alonso has talked a lot about patience and "process", but those aren't words that fly in Madrid. This is an institution that demands results, and Alonso will simply have to control the noise around the club - especially when the results aren't necessarily positive. Pachuca, in that sense, is a kind matchup in their next Club World Cup game. Real really should win. That will alleviate concerns and keep the streets happy, for now at least. Long-term, though, he will have to be a bit more defiant.

"I'll do it 10 times if I have to. They're not ready." Those were the words of Vinicius Jr after Rodri pipped him to the Ballon d'Or last year. And, well, we're still waiting.

Vinicius has been maddeningly inconsistent for the past nine months, and clearly has no real idea how to play with Mbappe. That is going to be a tactical issue that Alonso will have to figure out. But perhaps more concerning is the fact that Vinicius doesn't quite look himself when he has the ball. Everything is a bit slower and less expressive. He backed out of a few 1v1s against Al-Hilal, and was pocketed by Joao Cancelo, who he had ripped apart on numerous occasions in previous matchups.

There is clearly a link here. Theoretically, Trent can play those long diagonal balls right onto his right toe, and Vinicius will work his magic. But making a player believe that he can win all of his individual battles is a proper challenge. On his day, Vinicius is the best footballer in the world. Alonso has to find a way to make him remember that.

How did we get to a spot in which former best player in the world Jude Bellingham is now an egotistical liability? He was a bit all over the place at the back end of last season, cutting a frustrated figure and doing less and less to help the Madridista cause as the campaign wound down. There was hope that Alonso would bring a renewed verve and vibe out of the England man.

It's early days, but not much has changed about the midfielder's play. He still looks immensely clever on the ball, but his understanding with Vini Jr, once the hallmark of Los Blancos' success, is lacking. There were a number of occasions against Al-Hilal where he made the wrong run, or didn't get into the right spaces. He still holds onto the ball for too long, and shouts at referees for no apparent reason. Certainly, some of it is positional. He doesn't have an established spot - yet. But it's also a question of a larger role in the side.

Is Bellingham a bit of everything, or just really good in the final third? Can he evolve into a defensive presence? No-one really seems to know.

Raul Asencio is a good footballer. There is no doubt about that fact. He may have been thrust into the first team too early, but the academy centre-back proved over six months last year that he is ready for high-level football at 21 years old. That's really very difficult to do. At Madrid, it's even harder.

But whether he quite has Alonso's trust is less clear. Huijsen, bought from Bournemouth for big money a few weeks ago, is clearly a long-term star at the back. He has all of the traits of a world-class defender and will be at the top of the game for years to come. Antonio Rudiger has plenty of football left in him, too, but is struggling with knee injuries. Eder Militao has torn his ACL twice in as many years. Aurelien Tchouameni, too, can handle a bit of centre-back.

Piece it all together, and Real have just one reliable centre-back, who is basically still in the embryonic phase of his career. Alonso hooked Asencio at half-time against Al-Hilal, after he gave away a brain-dead penalty in the first period. It wasn't an immense display of trust from the manager. But with the injuries a real concern - and a back three possible - the head coach will have to either learn to trust the youngster or find another solution.