🔗 Share this article Alonso Navigating a Fine Line at Madrid Amidst Player Endorsement. No forward in the club's annals had gone without a goal for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but eventually he was unleashed and he had a message to deliver, executed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had not scored in nine months and was beginning only his fifth game this season, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the advantage against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and sprinted towards the bench to embrace Xabi Alonso, the coach under pressure for whom this could prove an even greater relief. “This is a challenging time for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Performances aren’t coming off and I aimed to prove people that we are together with the coach.” By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been surrendered, a setback following. City had reversed the score, going 2-1 ahead with “minimal”, Alonso noted. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” state, he continued, but at least Madrid had responded. On this occasion, they could not complete a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played a handful of minutes all season, hit the bar in the final seconds. A Delayed Sentence “It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo admitted. The issue was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to keep his role. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was perceived internally. “Our performance proved that we’re behind the manager: we have performed creditably, offered 100%,” Courtois concluded. And so judgment was withheld, any action pending, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla on the horizon. A More Credible Type of Setback 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 little different. This was Manchester City, as opposed to a domestic opponent. Streamlined, they had competed with intensity, the easiest and most critical accusation not directed at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly securing something at the death. There were “numerous of very good things” about this performance, the manager stated, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, on this occasion. The Fans' Mixed Response That was not always the complete picture. There were spells in the closing 45 minutes, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At the conclusion, some of supporters had repeated that, although there was likewise pockets of appreciation. But for the most part, there was a subdued stream to the doors. “It's to be expected, we understand it,” Rodrygo noted. Alonso remarked: “It’s nothing that is unprecedented before. And there were instances when they clapped too.” Squad Backing Stands Firm “I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso declared. And if he backed them, they supported him too, at least towards the public. There has been a rapprochement, talks: the coach had considered them, perhaps more than they had embraced him, finding a point not quite in the center. Whether durable a remedy that is is still an open question. One seemingly minor moment in the post-match press conference felt telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to follow his own path, Alonso had let that idea to linger, replying: “I have a good connection with Pep, we know each other well and he understands what he is implying.” A Foundation of Resistance Most importantly though, he could be satisfied that there was a resistance, a response. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they publicly backed him. This support may have been theatrical, done out of obligation or mutual survival, but in this climate, it was significant. The commitment with which they played had been as well – even if there is a temptation of the most elementary of standards somehow being elevated as a kind of success. The previous day, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a plan, that their shortcomings were not his responsibility. “I think my teammate Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to improve the approach. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have witnessed a shift.” Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were supporting the coach, also answered with a figure: “100%.” “We are continuing striving to solve it in the dressing room,” he elaborated. “We understand that the [outside] noise will not be beneficial so it is about striving to sort it out in there.” “I think the manager has been superb. I myself have a strong rapport with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the run of games where we were held a few, we had some very productive conversations among ourselves.” “Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe referring as much about poor form as his own predicament.
No forward in the club's annals had gone without a goal for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but eventually he was unleashed and he had a message to deliver, executed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had not scored in nine months and was beginning only his fifth game this season, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the advantage against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and sprinted towards the bench to embrace Xabi Alonso, the coach under pressure for whom this could prove an even greater relief. “This is a challenging time for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Performances aren’t coming off and I aimed to prove people that we are together with the coach.” By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been surrendered, a setback following. City had reversed the score, going 2-1 ahead with “minimal”, Alonso noted. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” state, he continued, but at least Madrid had responded. On this occasion, they could not complete a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played a handful of minutes all season, hit the bar in the final seconds. A Delayed Sentence “It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo admitted. The issue was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to keep his role. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was perceived internally. “Our performance proved that we’re behind the manager: we have performed creditably, offered 100%,” Courtois concluded. And so judgment was withheld, any action pending, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla on the horizon. A More Credible Type of Setback 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 little different. This was Manchester City, as opposed to a domestic opponent. Streamlined, they had competed with intensity, the easiest and most critical accusation not directed at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly securing something at the death. There were “numerous of very good things” about this performance, the manager stated, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, on this occasion. The Fans' Mixed Response That was not always the complete picture. There were spells in the closing 45 minutes, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At the conclusion, some of supporters had repeated that, although there was likewise pockets of appreciation. But for the most part, there was a subdued stream to the doors. “It's to be expected, we understand it,” Rodrygo noted. Alonso remarked: “It’s nothing that is unprecedented before. And there were instances when they clapped too.” Squad Backing Stands Firm “I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso declared. And if he backed them, they supported him too, at least towards the public. There has been a rapprochement, talks: the coach had considered them, perhaps more than they had embraced him, finding a point not quite in the center. Whether durable a remedy that is is still an open question. One seemingly minor moment in the post-match press conference felt telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to follow his own path, Alonso had let that idea to linger, replying: “I have a good connection with Pep, we know each other well and he understands what he is implying.” A Foundation of Resistance Most importantly though, he could be satisfied that there was a resistance, a response. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they publicly backed him. This support may have been theatrical, done out of obligation or mutual survival, but in this climate, it was significant. The commitment with which they played had been as well – even if there is a temptation of the most elementary of standards somehow being elevated as a kind of success. The previous day, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a plan, that their shortcomings were not his responsibility. “I think my teammate Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to improve the approach. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have witnessed a shift.” Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were supporting the coach, also answered with a figure: “100%.” “We are continuing striving to solve it in the dressing room,” he elaborated. “We understand that the [outside] noise will not be beneficial so it is about striving to sort it out in there.” “I think the manager has been superb. I myself have a strong rapport with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the run of games where we were held a few, we had some very productive conversations among ourselves.” “Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe referring as much about poor form as his own predicament.