Alvaro Arbeloa’s Brutal Nickname on the Real Madrid Bench Explained

The manager has struggled with an out-of-control locker room.

Álvaro Arbeloa’s authority at Real Madrid has come under scrutiny. | Joaquin Corchero/Europa Press/Getty Images

It has been the week from hell for Álvaro Arbeloa, as the Real Madrid manager faces a team in civil war.

Training ground tensions boiled over this week, with Federico Valverde ending up in hospital after a confrontation with midfield teammate Aurélien Tchouaméni. Meanwhile, Álvaro Carreras seemingly confirmed reports that he had been slapped by Antonio Rüdiger in a separate incident.

Disharmony within the locker room has apparently reached new levels, amid reports of a split between factions.

It has been reported that as few as just four players now still back Arbeloa as manager, while there are supposedly several no longer on speaking terms with the boss.

The former right back is widely expected to leave his role at the end of the season, but these final weeks must feel interminable for the man who was supposed to steady the ship after Xabi Alonso’s sudden departure in January.

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Clasico Nightmare Awaits

The Clasico could confirm Barcelona as La Liga champions. | Burak Akbulut/Anadolu/Getty Images

The cap on Arbeloa’s nightmare week comes this Sunday, as Madrid travel to Catalonia to face Barcelona in the season’s final Clásico.

Should the hosts avoid defeat, they will be crowned back-to-back La Liga champions, thus condemning their great rivals to another season without a major trophy.

The prospect of playing a part in Barcelona’s coronation will be particularly difficult for Arbeloa who has a long history anatoginsm with the Catalan club.

During his own playing days, Arbeloa—a staunch defender of Madrid on and off the pitch—regularly got into spats with Barça stars, leading to a nickname that has stuck with him over the years.

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Arbeloa Known as the ‘Cone’

Bienvenido y mucha suerte en tu nueva andadura profesional, Álvaro Arbeloa, coach cono. pic.twitter.com/eBkjCntuFv

— JuanitaBanana (@Alissonofabitch) January 12, 2026

Back in 2015, Arbeloa tweeted about Gerard Pique: “Someday I’ll see my friend Gerard on the Comedy Club, talking about Real Madrid for sure.”

Pique responded a few days later, infamously telling reporters: “I wouldn’t call him a friend, more an acquaintance.”

The Spanish word for acquaintance is conocido, with Pique putting emphasize on the first syallable cono—which means cone. Pique was playing into the joke that Arbeloa as a player was as much use as a training cone.

The moniker stuck, with Arbeloa regularly referred to by rival fans as cono over the years despite his success, which included being part of two Champions League-winning teams.

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Madrid Bench Using Cruel Nickname

Arbeloa seemingly no longer has the respect of the team. | Joaquin Corchero/Europa Press/Getty Images

It seems that the nickname isn’t only a thing for rivals, with journalist Manolo Lama claiming that Real Madrid’s benched stars are now also using the term to describe their boss.

He said: “Many of the problems stem from the fact that the Spanish players who aren't playing, when they're on the bench, keep calling Arbeloa 'the cone'.

“Look at that cone, how bad he is, look at that cone, he doesn't get it.”

It is claimed that Arbeloa hasn't heard the nickname directly, but the information has reached him through his staff.

Meanwhile, AS reports that Madrid have even considered “setting traps” to catch the culprit behind sensational locker room leaks that have shed light on the state of the club’s disarray.

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