Real Madrid 3-2 » The match of the career! Jefte ELIMINATED Real from the Spanish Cup, at Arbeloa's debut!

• It was Real's first match with Alvaro Arbeloa on the bench. The former right-back took over the blanco bench on an interim basis, after Xabi Alonso was sent off.

Xabi Alonso sacked and Alvaro Arbeloa promoted from second team Castilla to lead a difficult dressing room. On the other side, the formation that occupies the 17th place in the Spanish second league and on which the Madrid players they had not faced each other in an official match for 21 years, since April 2005.

With these elements, Real Madrid experienced a nightmare evening, in which they looked deplorable.

In the first half, except for the accidental goal in the 3rd minute of overtime, a big zero against Real. Dense fog in Albacete, Real's game was also in the fog. With no offensive ideas, no penetrating power or fantasy in the last pass, Arbeloa's students had only sent four shots on goal, but none dangerous, in the first 45 minutes.

Facing a colossus without fangs, Albacete sensed the fertile ground and forced towards the end of the first half. The fruits were reaped in the 42nd minute, when Villar rose in the opponent's box and scored with his head at the end of a corner.

Real saved appearances in the last minute of extra time of the first part. “Los blancos” – today in blue – equalized, scoring also from a corner kick. Guler crossed, Huijsen resumed with his head, the goalkeeper rejected in front, from where Mastantuono, on an evening when nothing had come out, pushed the ball into the net.

Jefte Betancor and Albacete eliminated Real Madrid from the King's Cup!

Madrid started the second half better, they had some consistent actions, but they lacked inspiration in the last pass, at the finish.

Timid attempts from Gonzalo Garcia and Vinicius, but neither found the net.

The second division felt there was room for improvement. Riki Rodriguez tried his luck from outside the box in the 81st minute, but Lunin saved. On a second attempt, Alaba came to the rescue, deflecting in the corner.

It was the phases that announced the goal. A few tens of seconds later, after the execution of the corner kick, Gonzalo Garcia rejected to the side again Jefte Betancor, the striker who also went through the Superliga, at Voluntari, Farul and CFR Cluj, scored with a shot from the groundwhich Lunin, Madrid's Cup goalkeeper, could not intervene. Jefte entered the second half, minute 58.

Real equalized once more, also at the end of a corner, through Gonzalo Garciaheader in the 90th+1st minute, but Jefte had the last word, with a super execution in the 4th minute of overtime.

The Iberian took advantage of the hesitation of Lunin, who did not come out to meet him, he shot badly the first time, in the block of Carvajal, but the ball came back to him and the second time he hit from the drop, with effect, to the long corner. Lunin, just a spectator.

Immediately after that goal, an indescribable joy. The party officially started after the final whistle and will continue late into the night.

IT WAS WRITTEN 🤍

IT WAS AN UNFORGETTABLE DAY 🦇

WHITE WATER! 🤩🤩🤩🤩 pic.twitter.com/gnCSxedXhA

— Albacete Balompié 🤍 (@AlbaceteBPSAD) January 14, 2026

FINAL » Albacete – Real Madrid 3-2

Albacete – Real Madrid, starting teams:

ALBACETE (5-3-2): Lizoain – Lorenzo, Moreno, Villar, Neva, Bernabeu – Capi, Melendez, Pacheco – Escriche, Lazo

Some interesting details:

• Javi Villar, who scored against Real, is a player brought up by the Madrid team, to which he was registered between 2021 and 2024.

• Real face a footballer with a name embedded in the history of the club, at the Bernabeu – Dani Bernabeu -, an 18-year-old left back.

REAL MADRID (4-4-2): Lunin – D. Jimenez, Asencio, Huijsen, F. Garcia – Valverde, Cestero Sancho, Guler – Mastantuono, G. Garcia, Vinicius

Promoted from Castilla, the club's second team, Arbeloa started two players he knows well from the “satellite”. They are right-back David Jimenez (21) and central midfielder Jorge Cestero Sancho (19).