Xabi Alonso coy on Dean Huijsen’s El Clásico return — a rival’s brutal verdict

Xabi Alonso declined to confirm whether Dean Huijsen will be available for El Clásico, saying he’ll reveal the decision on Saturday. The uncertainty set off a wave of optimism from Madrid fans buoyed by a Man of the Match display from Arda Güler and Jude Bellingham’s first goal of the season, yet others warned against rushing any defender back to action. From a rival lens, this smacks of classic pre-Clásico smoke and mirrors: tease the return, force the opponent to prepare for multiple scenarios, then hedge late. If he’s not fully fit, starting him would be a gift.

In pre-Clásico media availability, Xabi Alonso was asked directly if Dean Huijsen would be back for the showdown and responded that he would provide clarity on Saturday. The timing coincided with a surge of fan discussion highlighting Arda Güler being named Man of the Match and Jude Bellingham opening his season account, reinforcing confidence within the Madrid camp. A portion of the discourse urged caution, noting that any defender returning from a layoff should not be thrust into the most intense fixture on the calendar without demonstrable match rhythm. The club has kept specific fitness benchmarks and timelines undisclosed.

🚨 Xabi Alonso: "Dean Huijsen back for El Clásico? I'll tell you on Saturday."

@MadridXtra

Impact Analysis

From a rival analyst’s vantage point, this is the oldest play in the book: dangle the possibility of a defensive reinforcement to complicate the opponent’s match prep, but keep all medical and load-management details opaque. In practical terms, the real impact hinges on readiness across three axes: acceleration load (sprint exposure in the last 10 days), change-of-direction tolerance (COD metrics in small-sided drills), and contact confidence (duels, aerials, and body-on-body sequences in the last two training blocks). If any of those are red-flagged, a start in El Clásico is a tactical liability rather than an upgrade.

Even if available, a defender returning from limited minutes typically shows rust in timing and spacing, especially against high-tempo rotations and blind-side runs. Barcelona will bait the first line with decoy occupation, then attack the channel outside the right center-back with diagonal entries and third-man combinations. The calculus favors the attacker: one misread on the step-or-drop decision, and it’s a high xG cutback. The rival’s confidence will rise not because of the name on the team sheet, but because of the probability that match intensity exposes micro-timing deficits that training cannot simulate.

Net-net: unless he has logged a full, high-speed week plus a competitive cameo with clean data, the risk of fielding him outweighs the reputational boost of announcing his return.

Reaction

Social sentiment split along familiar lines. Optimists welcomed any hint of defensive reinforcement before the season’s most psychologically charged fixture, framing it as the final piece toward a fully fit squad. They cited recent positives—Arda Güler’s Man of the Match nod and Bellingham’s first strike of the campaign—as proof the momentum arc is bending their way. The mood music: “get him back in and ride the wave.”

Pragmatists countered with a blunt caveat: El Clásico is not a fitness test. If the medical and performance staff cannot validate sprint exposure, agility tolerance, and contact readiness, they’d rather see continuity at the back than reputational roulette. A few voices demanded clarity, pressing for specifics on training minutes and internal metrics rather than coy teasers. Others questioned the strategic posture—why keep a player on ice if the sole purpose isn’t this exact fixture—while still insisting that forced returns often backfire.

From the rival camp, the tone was predictably sardonic: if there’s hesitation today, there will be hesitation on match day. They pointed to the risk of early substitutions disrupting structure and magnifying pressing gaps. In short, fanbases mirror their priors—belief vs. risk—and both sides are reading the same breadcrumbs through different lenses.

Social reactions

Honestly I'm happy we are going in with Asensio instead of hudjsen.. We need that aggressiveness in defense on sunday.. Barca are good in fast transition and we all know hudjsen weakness ,pace!! And we are gonna be facing lots of counter attacks.

Gawat ladejobi (@GawatLadejobi)

Fingers crossed for Huijsen’s return! A fully fit squad could be a game-changer for El Clásico! #HalaMadrid

Sky Sentinel (@skysentinel9)

Madrid's latest best signing is back 💪🏻

Arsenal FCL (@fcl_arsenal)

Prediction

Scenario 1: Bench and late cameo. Most probable if training data is mixed. Expect a conservative 15–25 minutes if game state demands aerial insurance or back-three protection to close the match. Minimal tactical disruption, minimal risk.

Scenario 2: Surprise start. If this happens, the plan is likely heavy protection: a compact mid-block, fullback tucking inside, and a pivot shadowing the half-space to reduce isolation. Opponents will target diagonal balls into the channel and early cutbacks, forcing repeated high-speed turns—precisely the patterns that stress a returning defender. Expect an early press trap to test timing; one slip invites a momentum swing.

Scenario 3: Not in the squad. If final medical thresholds aren’t met, the staff will kick the can to the next league fixture. The media framing will be “precaution,” but the underlying signal is that internal metrics (high-speed running and contact tolerance) didn’t clear green.

My rival-side call: he doesn’t start. At best, a controlled cameo. The data-led path implies protecting the player and the structure rather than gambling in the most volatile 90 minutes of the domestic calendar.

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Conclusion

Strip away the headline tease and the picture is straightforward: if the metrics are green, a defender plays; if not, Saturday becomes about optics rather than substance. The attempt to keep the opponent guessing is understandable, but the trade-off is internal—disrupting a settled back line to squeeze in a half-fit return is the kind of decision that swings El Clásico in transition moments. From a rival perspective, the smarter wager is continuity over clout. The opponent will craft match plans to stress precisely the movements that punish rust: blind-side runs, fast diagonals, and layered cutbacks.

Yes, the attacking form uptick—Güler’s spark and Bellingham’s tally—drops a glossy filter over the week. But dressing room optimism doesn’t rewrite load management. If the staff had bankable certainty, we’d have heard less coyness and more conviction. Expect late theater, conservative usage, and a public relations win framed as “he’s back in the group” rather than a 90-minute solution. Until the data says otherwise, advantage to the side forcing the game into those decisive, high-speed defensive reads.