Xabi Alonso Walking a Thin Tightrope at Madrid Despite Dressing Room Backing.

No forward in the club's history had gone without a goal for as long as Rodrygo, but at last he was released and he had a statement to deliver, acted out for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in nine months and was commencing only his fifth appearance this campaign, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to hand his team the opening goal against the English champions. Then he wheeled and sprinted towards the touchline to greet Xabi Alonso, the coach in the spotlight for whom this could prove an profound relief.

“This is a challenging moment for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo said. “Performances aren't working out and I sought to demonstrate everyone that we are together with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo spoke, the advantage had been lost, another loss taking its place. City had turned it around, taking 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso observed. That can happen when you’re in a “delicate” state, he elaborated, but at least Madrid had responded. On this occasion, they could not complete a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played very little all season, struck the bar in the final seconds.

A Delayed Verdict

“It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo admitted. The issue was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to keep his position. “We didn’t feel that [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated, but that was how it had been portrayed in the media, and how it was felt privately. “We have shown that we’re with the manager: we have played well, offered 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so the axe was reserved, any action pending, with matches against Alavés and Sevilla looming.

A Distinct Type of Loss

Madrid had been overcome at home for the second time in four days, continuing their poor form to two wins in eight, but this felt a somewhat distinct. This was a European powerhouse, not a lesser opponent. Stripped down, they had actually run, the easiest and most harsh charge not levelled at them on this night. With eight men out injured, they had lost only to a messy goal and a spot-kick, nearly securing something at the final whistle. There were “a lot of very good things” about this performance, the manager argued, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Mixed Reaction

That was not completely the complete picture. There were periods in the second half, as discontent grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had whistled. At the conclusion, some of supporters had done so again, although there was also sporadic clapping. But for the most part, there was a muted flow to the exits. “It's to be expected, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso remarked: “There's nothing that is unprecedented before. And there were instances when they applauded too.”

Dressing Room Support Stands Evident

“I feel the support of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he backed them, they supported him too, at least for the media. There has been a coming together, discussions: the coach had accommodated them, maybe more than they had embraced him, finding somewhere not exactly in the center.

How lasting a fix that is is still an open question. One small moment in the after-game press conference appeared notable. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s counsel to follow his own path, Alonso had permitted that implication to hang there, replying: “I have a good connection with Pep, we know each other well and he understands what he is implying.”

A Basis of Fight

Crucially though, he could be pleased that there was a fight, a response. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they stood up for him. Part of it may have been for show, done out of duty or mutual survival, but in this climate, it was important. The effort with which they played had been equally so – even if there is a danger of the most elementary of requirements somehow being framed as a form of success.

Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had insisted the coach had a plan, that their shortcomings were not his responsibility. “I believe my colleague Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to alter the approach. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have observed a difference.”

Jude Bellingham, asked if they were supporting the coach, also replied in numbers: “100%.”

“We are continuing trying to solve it in the locker room,” he said. “It's clear that the [outside] speculation will not be productive so it is about striving to resolve it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the manager has been excellent. I myself have a excellent relationship with him,” Bellingham added. “After the sequence of games where we drew a few, we had some honest conversations behind the scenes.”

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