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“We are a united club, a team, and we all move forward together,” Xabi Alonso insisted, possibly protesting somewhat excessively. “If you coach Real Madrid, you are prepared for anything,” he continued on the eve before Manchester City step back into the Santiago Bernabéu for another edition of a frequent heavyweight clash. “I am eager for what lies ahead, beginning tomorrow, a chance to transform the frustration. Our sole focus is City. In this sport, whether good or bad, situations evolve rapidly.” Failure and things could shift instantly, and permanently: this chance is an imperative, too.

Urgent Meetings After Poor Home Defeat

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 setback on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “drawn conclusions,” and he was far from the only one. Late into the night, emergency discussions continued, the club’s leadership forming their own opinions after a solitary triumph in five league games. Their diagnoses were divergent and while drastic decisions remain on hold, tolerance has limits, the names of candidates already in the public domain. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso commented

“For sure the coach had a good plan but, in the end we, the players, are the ones on the pitch,” Aurélien Tchouaméni remarked. “A 2-0 defeat to Celta indicates an issue that lies with us, not the manager.”

A Quick Descent After Early Promise

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it might be his final one at a club where a turmoil is perpetually looming after a few setbacks, where even draws will not do, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed changed fast, even if the roots of the crisis were there from the start. Sold as a systems coach, exactly what they needed after a season of lack of discipline and disappointment, Alonso was an anomaly at a squad-centric organization.

When Madrid won the clásico in late October, they established a five-point lead at the top. They had secured twelve victories in thirteen competitive games, although the loss had been heavy: 5-2 at Atlético. It also revealed cracks. Substituted on 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior headed directly for the dressing room, threatening to walk straight out the club. In a missive a few days later he apologised to everyone except Alonso. At the executive level, rather than supporting the trainer, there was radio silence.

Frictions Brought to the Surface

Behind the scenes, the assessment was clear: Alonso was wrong to remove Vinícius off. Pressed on the issue if he would do that again, Alonso answered: “I am unsure of the purpose of that query. If, in the moment, I believe a decision is required on the field, I will make it.” Tensions had been exposed, a separation between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The components weren't meshing as they should. A common complaint began to slip out about all the directives, the video analysis, the long sessions. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Over a week after the clásico, Madrid were defeated at Anfield, beginning a run of two wins in seven. When adopting a straightforward approach, they beat Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those drew at Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to mend divisions or at least paper over the issues, to restore tranquility. Focus turned on the footballers for the first time.

A Fragile Rapprochement

In Bilbao, where they had been brought together a day early, it seemed some compromise had been reached; Alonso accommodating their demands more than they did his. A thawing of relations was staged when Vinícius greeted the coach as he departed. A brief break followed. A few days after, though, Celta beat them and so it falls apart once more.

That it is understood that Alonso’s future is on the line is as notable as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be denied, but it is deliberate. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about injuries and injustice, not even truly convincing himself, Madrid were awful against Celta: no identity, a deficient mentality, an absence of tactical shape.

The Manager: The Most Obvious Solution

But the simplest fix, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the sporting matters, was the central theme to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to redirect attention to the match, which he did with virtually all his replies. The shortest answer he gave might have been the most revealing, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the whole squad was behind him, Alonso replied in a single word: “yes.”

“The role of Real Madrid coach isn't to alter the culture; it is to adjust,” Alonso stated. “We know the culture of Real Madrid pretty well; that is why it is the biggest club in the world. You have to adapt, learn a lot, interact with the players. Some days are good, some not so good. We have to face that with energy and positivity, that is the only way to turn things around.”

It was when he was asked if he felt alone that Alonso talked of a unit, a club, that goes in unison, and when attention was turned to the question of backing or its absence from above, he answered: “Communication [with the hierarchy] is constant, and it comes from confidence, unity and affection. We’re all together in this. We’re mentally ready to face everything that comes: the team is united, convinced that we can win tomorrow, no one has any doubts about that. It is the Champions League. We are at the Bernabéu. The atmosphere will be special. That creates a different energy, including in the players.”