Alonso Walking a Precarious Tightrope at the Bernabéu Despite Dressing Room Support.

No forward in the club's annals had gone without a goal for as extended a period as Rodrygo, but eventually he was released and he had a statement to deliver, executed for the world to see. The Brazilian, who had not scored in an extended drought and was starting only his fifth game this campaign, beat custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma to hand his team the advantage against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and ran towards the sideline to hug Xabi Alonso, the coach in the spotlight for whom this could prove an more significant release.

“It’s a difficult time for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Performances aren't working out and I sought to demonstrate people that we are united with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the lead had been taken from them, a defeat following. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso observed. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” situation, he continued, but at least Madrid had fought back. Ultimately, they could not pull off a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played very little all season, struck the woodwork in the closing stages.

A Suspended Sentence

“It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo said. The issue was whether it would be enough for Alonso to retain his position. “That wasn't our perception [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 demonstrated that we’re behind the manager: we have performed creditably, given 100%,” Courtois added. And so the axe was withheld, sentencing delayed, with games against Alavés and Sevilla looming.

A Distinct Type of Defeat

Madrid had been beaten at home for the second occasion in four days, continuing their uninspiring streak to just two victories in eight, but this seemed a somewhat distinct. This was a European powerhouse, rather than a La Liga opponent. Stripped down, they had actually run, the most obvious and most critical accusation not levelled at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a spot-kick, coming close to salvaging something at the end. There were “a lot of very good things” about this display, the boss stated, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Muted Reaction

That was not entirely the complete picture. There were spells in the latter period, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had whistled. At full time, a section of supporters had continued, although there was also sporadic clapping. But primarily, there was a muted flow to the exits. “We understand that, we accept it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso remarked: “This is nothing that hasn’t happened before. And there were times when they cheered too.”

Dressing Room Backing Is Firm

“I feel the support of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he stood by them, they backed him too, at least for the media. There has been a rapprochement, talks: the coach had accommodated them, perhaps more than they had adapted to him, reaching a point not exactly in the middle.

Whether durable a solution that is continues to be an unresolved issue. One small moment in the after-game press conference appeared telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s suggestion to follow his own path, Alonso had permitted that implication to remain unanswered, replying: “I have a good connection with Pep, we know each other well and he is aware of what he is talking about.”

A Basis of Reaction

Most importantly though, he could be content that there was a spirit, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not let Alonso fall during the game and after it they defended him. This support may have been theatrical, done out of professionalism or self-interest, but in this climate, it was important. The intensity with which they played had been too – even if there is a risk of the most basic of requirements somehow being framed as a type of success.

Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had insisted the coach had a vision, that their failings were not his responsibility. “I believe my colleague Aurélien put it perfectly in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The sole solution is [for] the players to improve the attitude. The attitude is the key thing and today we have observed a shift.”

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

“We’re still attempting to figure it out in the locker room,” he said. “It's clear that the [outside] chatter will not be beneficial so it is about attempting to resolve it in there.”

“In my opinion the gaffer has been excellent. I personally have a great rapport with him,” Bellingham concluded. “After the sequence of games where we tied a few, we had some honest conversations behind the scenes.”

“Everything concludes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, possibly talking as much about adversity as his own predicament.