Alonso Walking a Fine Line at Real Madrid Even With Dressing Room Backing.

No attacker in Real Madrid’s history had experienced without a goal for as extended a period as Rodrygo, but finally he was unleashed and he had a message to deliver, executed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in almost a year and was starting only his fifth appearance this campaign, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to give them the lead against the English champions. Then he turned and ran towards the sideline to greet Xabi Alonso, the manager in the spotlight for whom this could represent an profound liberation.

“This is a difficult period for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo said. “Things aren't working out and I wanted to show the public that we are together with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo made his comments, the advantage had been taken from them, a defeat taking its place. City had turned it around, going 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso remarked. That can happen when you’re in a “sensitive” situation, he continued, but at least Madrid had fought back. This time, they could not pull off a recovery. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played very little all season, hit the crossbar in the dying moments.

A Suspended Sentence

“The effort fell short,” Rodrygo conceded. The issue was whether it would be enough for Alonso to keep his role. “We didn’t feel that [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois remarked, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “We have shown that we’re with the manager: we have performed creditably, given 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so judgment was withheld, any action pending, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Distinct Type of Loss

Madrid had been beaten at home for the second occasion in four days, extending their poor form to two wins in eight, but this was a more respectable. This was a European powerhouse, as opposed to a lesser opponent. Simplified, they had actually run, the easiest and most harsh accusation not directed at them on this night. With multiple players out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly securing something at the final whistle. There were “many of very good things” about this showing, the manager argued, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight.

The Fans' Mixed Reaction

That was not completely the case. There were periods in the closing 45 minutes, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At the final whistle, a portion of supporters had continued, although there was also pockets of appreciation. But mostly, there was a quiet procession to the doors. “It's to be expected, we accept it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso remarked: “This is nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were times when they cheered too.”

Dressing Room Backing Is Strong

“I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they backed him too, at least for the cameras. There has been a coming together, talks: the coach had considered them, arguably more than they had accommodated him, reaching common ground not quite in the compromise.

The longevity of a remedy that is is still an open question. One seemingly minor incident in the post-match press conference felt significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to do things his way, Alonso had let that notion to remain unanswered, responding: “I share a good rapport with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is talking about.”

A Foundation of Fight

Crucially though, he could be pleased that there was a spirit, a pushback. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they stood up for him. Some of this may have been theatrical, done out of professionalism or mutual survival, but in this context, it was meaningful. The effort with which they played had been too – even if there is a danger of the most fundamental of expectations somehow being framed as a form of positive.

In the build-up, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a plan, that their shortcomings were not his responsibility. “I think my colleague Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The key is [for] the players to alter the approach. The attitude is the key thing and today we have witnessed a shift.”

Jude Bellingham, asked if they were behind the coach, also replied quantitatively: “100%.”

“We persist in attempting to solve it in the locker room,” he continued. “It's clear that the [outside] noise will not be productive so it is about striving to fix it in there.”

“I think the coach has been superb. I myself have a strong rapport with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the run of games where we drew a few, we had some very productive conversations internally.”

“Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, possibly speaking as much about poor form as his own predicament.