Xabi Alonso Battles for His Future in Latest Instalment of Modern Fixture

“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” the manager stated emphatically, possibly protesting a little too much. “Being the manager of Real Madrid means you are always prepared,” he continued on the eve before Manchester City visit once more the Santiago Bernabéu for another instalment of a frequent heavyweight clash. “I’m looking forward to what’s coming and that starts tomorrow, [an opportunity] to turn round the anger. In our heads, there’s only City. In football, for better or worse, things change quickly”. A defeat and things could alter for good, and definitively: this chance is an imperative, too.

Urgent Meetings After Poor Setback

Following Madrid’s woefully inadequate 2-0 setback on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “drawn conclusions,” and he was far from the only one. Into the early hours, crisis talks persisted, the club’s leadership forming their own opinions after a single win in five league games. Their assessments were not the same and while drastic decisions are being postponed, forbearance is running out, the names of possible successors already out. “These are scenarios you must deal with, yet my mind is fixed only on the game, on what I can influence,” Alonso stated in the press conference

“Undoubtedly the manager prepared a solid strategy, but ultimately, we the footballers are the ones performing,” the French midfielder stated. “A 2-0 defeat to Celta indicates an issue that lies with us, not the manager.”

A Quick Deterioration After Initial Success

City will be his twenty-eighth match in charge of Madrid and it may prove to be his farewell at a club where a crisis is never more than a couple of defeats away, where even ties are unacceptable, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed shifted swiftly, even if the origins of the trouble were there from the start. Sold as a tactical disciplinarian, exactly what they needed after a season of permissiveness and underachievement, Alonso was a cultural shock at a players’ club.

When Madrid secured victory against Barcelona in late October, they moved five points ahead at the top. They had won 12 of 13 competitive games, although the loss had been heavy: 5-2 at Atlético. It also highlighted flaws. Taken off after 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior marched straight down the tunnel, seemingly ready to quit the club. In a statement a few days later he expressed regret to all apart from Alonso. At the executive level, rather than backing the coach, there was radio silence.

Strains Emerging

Within the dressing room, the assessment was evident: Alonso was wrong to remove Vinícius off. Asked here if he would repeat that decision, Alonso replied: “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 brought to the surface, a disconnect between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had expressed his irritation publicly. The pieces weren’t fitting as they should. A common complaint began to emerge about all the orders, the video analysis, the lengthy training. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Nine days after the clásico, Madrid were overcome at Liverpool, starting a sequence of two wins in seven. Capable of a more direct style, they defeated Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those drew at Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to repair cracks or at least paper over the issues, to bring calm. Focus was directed at the footballers for the first time.

A Temporary Truce

In Bilbao, where they had been assembled a day early, it seemed some middle ground had been found; Alonso yielding to their requests more than they did his. A thawing of relations was staged when Vinícius embraced the 44-year-old as he departed. Two days off followed. Subsequently, though, Celta defeated them and so it unravels again.

That it is known that Alonso’s future is in doubt is as important as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be rebutted, but it is calculated. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about injuries and bad luck, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were dreadful against Celta: an absence of character, poor commitment, an absence of tactical shape.

The Gaffer: The Simplest Fix

But the simplest fix, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the actual football, overshadowed the preparation to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to bring it back to the match, which he did with almost every response. The most concise reply he gave might have been the most significant, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the entire team was behind him, Alonso replied in a solitary term: “yes.”

“The role of Real Madrid coach isn't to alter the culture; it is to adjust,” Alonso continued. “The culture of Real Madrid is well-known to us; it's the reason for its status as the world's premier club. Adaptation, continuous learning, and player communication are key. There will be highs and lows. Meeting challenges with drive and a positive mindset is the only route to improvement.”

It was when he was asked if he felt by himself that Alonso talked of a collective, a club, that goes together, and when attention was turned to the question of backing or its absence from above, he commented: “Dialogue with the leadership is ongoing, founded on trust, togetherness, and mutual respect. We are all united in this endeavor. We are psychologically prepared for any challenge: the squad is unified, certain of victory tomorrow, without a shadow of doubt. This is the Champions League. We are playing at the Bernabéu. The environment will be electric. That generates a unique dynamism, even among the players.”