Sarabia Calls For Rebellion After The Painful Defeat At The Bernabéu

Elche on the tightrope: Sarabia Calls for Rebellion After the Painful Defeat at the Bernabéu

The franjiverde coach analyzes the win against Real Madrid and appeals to unity and pride to save the category.

Elche CF finds itself at a critical crossroads. The overwhelming 4-1 defeat against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu has extended the team's worrying streak of negative results so far in 2026. Despite the adverse score, coach Eder Sarabia is convinced that the situation is reversible, as long as the team is able to “understand what has happened and overcome it.”

In the press conference after the match, Sarabia acknowledged the sadness that overcomes the locker room. “Nobody likes to lose,” he stated candidly. Although he admitted that the team had moments of good play, he acknowledged that the Bernabéu was not the ideal setting to regain victory. “With strength, with unity, conviction and we have energy for what we have left in these ten games,” he stated, appealing to unity as the key to facing the final stretch of the season.

Sarabia's main message after the game focused on the mental aspect. “Today's learning is mental, to continue being strong,” he stressed. Despite accumulating three months without knowing victory, the coach highlighted the team's attitude. “We continue to show our faces. We have competed, we had opportunities… learn from small things and have a little more pride and courage. We have to defend this shirt and this shield until the end,” he insisted.

The coach pointed to the end of the first half as a crucial turning point in the development of the match. Two goals conceded in the 39th and 44th minutes tipped the balance in favor of the white team, preventing Elche from reaching the break with a more favorable result. “We tried to go 1-0 at halftime and manage the result better, but we made a loss and they put us 2-0,” he explained.

Sarabia was realistic when assessing the difficulty of the match against a Real Madrid team in a moment of great form. “Real Madrid is coming off its best game of the season and it was difficult. We have to correct things, knowing that we are not going to face this great team again, and improve,” he admitted, recognizing the rival's superiority on this occasion.

Elche's qualifying situation becomes even more delicate. After this defeat, the franjiverde team will depend on the result of Mallorca this Sunday to know if it remains out of the relegation places on its return to the top category. Despite the bad streak, Sarabia defended his team's overall performance throughout the season, underlining the merit of having reached this stage in the First Division.

“What we are doing has a lot of merit, despite this bad streak of results,” he asserted. “Coldly, there was the possibility of losing at the Bernabéu. We all need to be together, fill the stadium, and we give up absolutely everything to be able to return to stadiums like this,” he added, calling on the fans to support the team at this crucial moment.

The coach also referred to the fortune, or lack thereof, that seems to accompany the team in recent games. “Now we are at that point where those details that were on our side now fall against us,” he lamented, giving as an example Arda Güler's spectacular goal from about 60 meters, a play that, according to Sarabia, exemplifies the team's bad streak.

Asked about the differences between Xabi Alonso's Real Madrid, with whom they tied 2-2 in the first round, and the current one led by Arbeloa, Sarabia avoided entering into direct comparisons, preferring to focus on his own team. “What a mess you're putting me in. This is where the headline comes from (laughs),” he joked.

“I'm going to tell you about us,” he continued. “Xabi presented us with a very interesting match that day but we were on another level of success, playing at home, and now we don't have that spark. I think, mainly, that the difference is that in the first leg we were on the crest of the wave and now further down,” he concluded, recognizing the different dynamics of both teams in each match.

The fight for permanence intensifies and Elche needs a radical change of course. Sarabia and his players have the difficult task ahead of them to reverse the situation and demonstrate that they have the necessary grit to continue in the First Division.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What was the final result of the match between Real Madrid and Elche?

Real Madrid beat Elche with a result of 4-1.

How many games has Elche gone without winning in 2026?

Elche has gone three months without winning in 2026.

What aspects does Eder Sarabia consider key to reversing the team's situation?

Sarabia emphasizes the importance of understanding what happened, overcoming it, maintaining mental strength, pride, courage and team unity.

When will Elche's next match be played and against whom?

Elche will face Mallorca next Saturday.

How important is Mallorca's result for Elche?

Elche will depend on Mallorca's result to stay out of the relegation places.

What did Arda Güler score for Real Madrid?