Real Madrid legend Raul will leave Real Castilla at the end of the season and Alvaro Arbeloa will replace him as Los Blancos’ reserve team coach.

According to Marca, Raul has officially announced his decision to resign to the Real board after six years in charge and it has been accepted. The position of the “Lord of the Rings” will be replaced by another club legend, Arbeloa – a former right-back who is currently in charge of the club’s Juvenil A team. The appointment of Raul’s replacement is seen as a natural progression following his successful tenure with the youth teams, where he received praise for his style and leadership.

Although Raul will no longer be in charge of Real Castilla, the Spanish club’s board intends to keep him in a new role. Two potential options are being discussed. The first option would see Raul join Carlo Ancelotti’s first-team coaching staff, with whom Raul has a very good relationship. This move could give him the opportunity to further refine his coaching skills at the highest level.

The second possibility would see him take on a more administrative role within the youth academy, where he would work alongside the likes of Santiago Solari and Manu Fernandez to enhance the development of future talent.

Raul’s coaching career began in Real Madrid’s youth academy seven seasons ago, where he first took charge of Cadete B in the 2018/19 season. Early success saw him win 18 games in his debut campaign. Raul then took over Juvenil B, before being appointed head coach of Real Castilla for the 2019/20 season. During his time at Real Castilla, Raul played 178 games, winning 71 of them. Under his leadership, Real Castilla also came close to securing promotion to the Segunda Division (Spain’s second tier), but narrowly missed out in the 2022/23 season when they lost the promotion play-off final to Eldense.

During his time at Real Castilla, Raul was the subject of interest from many clubs looking to appoint him as head coach. However, Raul always chose to stay at Real Madrid and his commitment to the long-term vision of the club and the development of his players has been a hallmark of his tenure. The next few months will determine the exact nature of Raul’s new role, but one thing is clear: his journey with Real Madrid is far from over, and his next chapter promises to be as impactful as the last.