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“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” Xabi Alonso insisted, perhaps protesting a tad forcefully. “If you coach Real Madrid, you are prepared for anything,” he added on the morning before Manchester City step back into the Santiago Bernabéu for a new instalment of a contemporary rivalry. “I anticipate the challenge ahead, starting tomorrow—an opening to redirect the disappointment. Our minds are fixed solely on City. Football, for better or worse, is a game of swift changes.” A defeat and things could alter for good, and for good: this chance is an obligation, too.

Urgent Meetings After Dismal Setback

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 loss at their own stadium on Sunday, Alonso said he had “drawn conclusions,” and he was not alone. Into the early hours, crisis talks continued, the club’s hierarchy reaching their own verdicts after a mere one victory in five league games. Their assessments were different and while radical changes are being postponed, tolerance has limits, the names of potential replacements already circulating. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso commented

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” one of the squad's leaders said. “Losing by two goals to Celta points to a deficiency in our performance, not the coach's planning.”

A Swift Deterioration After Initial Success

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it might be his final one at a club where a crisis is never more than a couple of defeats away, where even sharing points is insufficient, 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. Hailed as a structured planner, precisely the required remedy after a season of lack of discipline and disappointment, Alonso was a cultural shock 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 setback was significant: 5-2 at Atlético. It also highlighted flaws. Taken off after 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior headed directly for the dressing room, seemingly ready to quit the club. In a letter a few days later he apologised to everyone except Alonso. From the club's leadership, rather than backing the coach, there was a conspicuous quiet.

Strains Coming to Light

Within the dressing room, the conclusion was obvious: Alonso shouldn’t have taken Vinícius off. Questioned on this point if he would do that again, Alonso responded: “The intent behind that question eludes me. When a situation on the pitch demands a choice, I make it.” Frictions had been laid bare, a separation between manager and certain squad members. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The puzzle pieces weren't aligning as they should. A typical grievance began to slip out about all the directives, the video analysis, the extended practices. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Over a week after the clásico, Madrid were overcome at Liverpool, starting a sequence of two wins in seven. Able to play direct, they defeated Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those tied with Rayo, Elche and Girona. Eventually, talks were held to fix fault lines or at least cover cracks, to restore tranquility. Focus turned on the footballers for the first time.

A Short-Lived Truce

In Bilbao, where they had been assembled a day early, it seemed some agreement had been reached; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. A thawing of relations was displayed when Vinícius hugged the coach as he departed. Two days off followed. Four days later, though, Celta defeated them and so it disintegrates anew.

That it is understood that Alonso’s future is in doubt is as notable as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be rebutted, but it is intentional. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about fitness issues and unfairness, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were dreadful against Celta: a lack of style, poor commitment, a lack of organization.

The Manager: The Easiest Target

But the weakest link, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the sporting matters, dominated the buildup to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to refocus on the match, which he did with nearly each answer. The briefest response 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.”

“Being Madrid manager is not about changing [the culture]; it is about adapting,” 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 by himself that Alonso talked of a unit, a club, that goes hand in hand, and when attention was turned to the question of support or the lack of it from above, he commented: “Our contact with the board is continuous, stemming from belief, solidarity, and care. We stand as one in this situation. Our mindset is geared to confront all obstacles: the team is cohesive, fully believing we can triumph tomorrow, with absolute certainty. It's the Champions League. The Bernabéu is our stage. The ambiance will be unforgettable. That fosters a distinct vitality, particularly within the squad.”