Manager Alonso Navigating a Precarious Path at Real Madrid Amidst Player Support.

No offensive player in Real Madrid’s record books had experienced scoreless for as long as Rodrygo, but finally he was released and he had a declaration to send, performed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had not scored in almost a year and was starting only his fifth appearance this term, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the advantage against Manchester City. Then he spun and ran towards the sideline to hug Xabi Alonso, the manager on the edge for whom this could represent an more significant relief.

“This is a difficult moment for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Results are not going our way and I aimed to demonstrate people that we are united with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo made his comments, the advantage had been taken from them, a defeat taking its place. City had reversed the score, going 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso remarked. That can transpire when you’re in a “fragile” state, he added, but at least Madrid had fought back. This time, they could not pull off a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played very little all season, hit the bar in the final seconds.

A Suspended Verdict

“It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo said. The issue was whether it would be enough for Alonso to hold onto his job. “We didn’t feel that [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois insisted, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was perceived internally. “We demonstrated that we’re supporting the coach: we have given a good account, given 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so the axe was reserved, consequences pending, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Different Form of Loss

Madrid had been defeated at home for the second match in four days, perpetuating their uninspiring streak to just two victories in eight, but this seemed a little different. This was the Premier League champions, as opposed to a La Liga opponent. Simplified, they had actually run, the most obvious and most damning charge not aimed at them in this instance. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a spot-kick, nearly earning something at the death. There were “many of very good things” about this performance, the boss argued, and there could be “no blame” of his players, not this time.

The Stadium's Muted Reaction

That was not entirely the case. There were periods in the second half, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At the conclusion, some of supporters had done so again, although there was likewise sporadic clapping. But primarily, there was a subdued procession to the exits. “That’s normal, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso stated: “This is nothing that hasn’t happened before. And there were instances when they clapped too.”

Squad Support Remains Strong

“I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he backed them, they backed him too, at least towards the public. There has been a unification, talks: the coach had considered them, arguably more than they had embraced him, meeting common ground not exactly in the middle.

The longevity of a remedy that is continues to be an matter of debate. One little moment in the after-game press conference appeared telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to stick to his principles, Alonso had allowed that idea to hang there, replying: “I have a good rapport with Pep, we understand each other well and he understands what he is implying.”

A Basis of Reaction

Above all though, he could be content that there was a resistance, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they defended him. Some of this may have been performative, done out of professionalism or mutual survival, but in this context, it was significant. The commitment with which they played had been too – even if there is a temptation of the most elementary of expectations somehow being promoted as a form of success.

Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a strategy, that their mistakes were not his responsibility. “In my view my teammate Aurélien put it perfectly in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The sole solution is [for] the players to alter the attitude. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have observed a difference.”

Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were behind the coach, also replied with a figure: “100%.”

“We’re still striving to work it out in the changing room,” he continued. “It's clear that the [outside] noise will not be productive so it is about trying to fix it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the coach has been great. I personally have a excellent relationship with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the spell of games where we were held a few, we had some very productive conversations among ourselves.”

“Every situation ends in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe talking as much about a difficult spell as anything else.