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“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” Xabi Alonso insisted, possibly asserting a little too much. “When you’re Real Madrid coach you’re ready,” he continued on the morning before Manchester City visit once more the Santiago Bernabéu for a new edition of a contemporary rivalry. “I am eager for what lies ahead, beginning tomorrow, a chance to transform the frustration. Our sole focus is City. In this sport, whether good or bad, situations evolve rapidly.” A defeat and things could shift instantly, and for good: this moment is an imperative, too.

Crisis Talks After Poor Home Defeat

Following Madrid’s utterly disappointing 2-0 setback on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “formed his own assessments,” and he was in plentiful company. Into the early hours, urgent meetings persisted, the club’s board forming their own opinions after a single win in five league games. Their analyses were not the same and while severe measures are temporarily shelved, forbearance is running out, the names of possible successors already in the public domain. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso said here

“Undoubtedly the manager prepared a solid strategy, but ultimately, we the footballers are the ones performing,” the French midfielder said. “If we lost 2-0 to Celta, there’s a problem that’s on us: it’s not the coach’s fault.”

A Swift Deterioration After Early Success

City will be his 28th game in charge of Madrid and it could be his last at a club where a crisis is always just two losses around the corner, where even sharing points is insufficient, and there’s perpetually an alternative who can coach. Things have indeed shifted swiftly, even if the origins of the trouble were there from the start. Hailed as a tactical disciplinarian, precisely the required remedy after a season of laissez-faire and failure, Alonso was counter-cultural at a squad-centric organization.

When Madrid won the clásico in late October, they moved five points ahead at the top. They had secured twelve victories in thirteen competitive games, although the loss had been heavy: 5-2 at Atlético. It also exposed fissures. Taken off after 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior stormed off down the tunnel, reportedly threatening to leave the club. In a missive a few days later he expressed regret to all apart from Alonso. From the club's leadership, rather than reinforcing the manager, there was radio silence.

Frictions Emerging

Internally, the verdict was evident: Alonso ought not to have substituted Vinícius off. Questioned on this point if he would make the same call, Alonso responded: “I don’t know what that question is for. If I see in the moment that I have to take a decision on the pitch, I do.” Strains had been laid bare, a rift between coach and some players. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The puzzle pieces weren't aligning as they should. A familiar lament began to slip out about all the orders, the video analysis, the extended practices. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

More than a week after the clásico, Madrid were defeated at Anfield, initiating a spell of two wins in seven. When adopting a straightforward approach, they defeated Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those drew at Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to mend divisions or at least paper over the issues, to establish peace. Focus turned on the footballers for the first time.

A Fragile Truce

In Bilbao, where they had been brought together a day early, it seemed some middle ground had been found; Alonso accommodating their demands more than they did his. A thawing of relations was orchestrated when Vinícius embraced the manager as he departed. Two days off followed. Subsequently, though, Celta beat them and so it falls apart once more.

That it is public knowledge that Alonso’s future is in doubt is as notable as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be denied, but it is intentional. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about fitness issues and bad luck, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were terrible against Celta: a lack of style, no attitude, no structure.

The Manager: The Most Obvious Solution

But the weakest link, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the on-pitch performance, dominated the buildup to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to redirect attention to the match, which he did with nearly each answer. The most concise reply he gave might have been the most significant, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the complete roster 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 alone that Alonso talked of a team, 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 replied: “Communication [with the hierarchy] is constant, and it comes from confidence, unity and affection. We’re all together in this. We’re mentally ready to face everything that comes: the team is united, convinced that we can win tomorrow, no one has any doubts about that. It is the Champions League. We are at the Bernabéu. The atmosphere will be special. That creates a different energy, including in the players.”