🔗 Share this article Xabi Alonso Walking a Fine Path at Madrid Even With Player Backing. No offensive player in the club's annals had endured scoreless for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but eventually he was released and he had a declaration to deliver, executed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in almost a year and was beginning only his fifth match this term, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the opening goal against Manchester City. Then he turned and ran towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the boss on the edge for whom this could represent an even greater relief. “It’s a challenging period for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Things are not going our way and I sought to demonstrate people that we are as one with the coach.” By the time Rodrygo spoke, the advantage had been lost, a setback ensuing. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso noted. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” state, he added, but at least Madrid had responded. This time, they could not engineer a recovery. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played 11 minutes all season, struck the woodwork in the closing stages. A Suspended Sentence “It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo said. The dilemma was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to hold onto his job. “That wasn't our perception [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois remarked, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “We have shown that we’re supporting the coach: we have performed creditably, offered 100%,” Courtois concluded. And so the axe was withheld, sentencing suspended, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent. A Different Kind of Loss Madrid had been defeated at home for the second time in four days, continuing their uninspiring streak to two wins in eight, but this felt a more respectable. This was Manchester City, rather than a domestic opponent. Stripped down, they had shown fight, the easiest and most damning charge not directed at them this time. With eight men out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly earning something at the end. There were “a lot of very good things” about this showing, the boss said, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight. The Bernabéu's Muted Reaction That was not completely the complete picture. There were periods in the closing 45 minutes, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At the conclusion, a portion of supporters had repeated that, although there was likewise pockets of appreciation. But primarily, there was a subdued flow to the exits. “That’s normal, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso stated: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were moments when they clapped too.” Dressing Room Unity Is Evident “I have the confidence of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they stood by him too, at least for the cameras. There has been a rapprochement, conversations: the coach had listened to them, arguably more than they had embraced him, meeting somewhere not quite in the compromise. How lasting a fix that is is still an unresolved issue. One small moment in the after-game press conference appeared telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to stick to his principles, Alonso had let that idea to hang there, responding: “I have a good connection with Pep, we understand each other well and he knows what he is saying.” A Foundation of Reaction Crucially though, he could be satisfied that there was a fight, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not let Alonso fall during the game and after it they stood up for him. This support may have been theatrical, done out of duty or self-preservation, but in this tense environment, it was important. The effort with which they played had been too – even if there is a risk of the most fundamental of standards somehow being framed as a kind of positive. Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a strategy, that their mistakes were not his doing. “I think my colleague Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The only way is [for] the players to alter the attitude. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have seen a difference.” Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were with the coach, also responded quantitatively: “100%.” “We persist in trying to solve it in the dressing room,” he elaborated. “We understand that the [outside] chatter will not be productive so it is about attempting to sort it out in there.” “I think the gaffer has been superb. I myself have a excellent connection with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the sequence of games where we tied a few, we had some very productive conversations among ourselves.” “Everything concludes in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe talking as much about poor form as his own predicament.
No offensive player in the club's annals had endured scoreless for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but eventually he was released and he had a declaration to deliver, executed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in almost a year and was beginning only his fifth match this term, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the opening goal against Manchester City. Then he turned and ran towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the boss on the edge for whom this could represent an even greater relief. “It’s a challenging period for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Things are not going our way and I sought to demonstrate people that we are as one with the coach.” By the time Rodrygo spoke, the advantage had been lost, a setback ensuing. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso noted. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” state, he added, but at least Madrid had responded. This time, they could not engineer a recovery. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played 11 minutes all season, struck the woodwork in the closing stages. A Suspended Sentence “It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo said. The dilemma was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to hold onto his job. “That wasn't our perception [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois remarked, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “We have shown that we’re supporting the coach: we have performed creditably, offered 100%,” Courtois concluded. And so the axe was withheld, sentencing suspended, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent. A Different Kind of Loss Madrid had been defeated at home for the second time in four days, continuing their uninspiring streak to two wins in eight, but this felt a more respectable. This was Manchester City, rather than a domestic opponent. Stripped down, they had shown fight, the easiest and most damning charge not directed at them this time. With eight men out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly earning something at the end. There were “a lot of very good things” about this showing, the boss said, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight. The Bernabéu's Muted Reaction That was not completely the complete picture. There were periods in the closing 45 minutes, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At the conclusion, a portion of supporters had repeated that, although there was likewise pockets of appreciation. But primarily, there was a subdued flow to the exits. “That’s normal, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso stated: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were moments when they clapped too.” Dressing Room Unity Is Evident “I have the confidence of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they stood by him too, at least for the cameras. There has been a rapprochement, conversations: the coach had listened to them, arguably more than they had embraced him, meeting somewhere not quite in the compromise. How lasting a fix that is is still an unresolved issue. One small moment in the after-game press conference appeared telling. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to stick to his principles, Alonso had let that idea to hang there, responding: “I have a good connection with Pep, we understand each other well and he knows what he is saying.” A Foundation of Reaction Crucially though, he could be satisfied that there was a fight, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not let Alonso fall during the game and after it they stood up for him. This support may have been theatrical, done out of duty or self-preservation, but in this tense environment, it was important. The effort with which they played had been too – even if there is a risk of the most fundamental of standards somehow being framed as a kind of positive. Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a strategy, that their mistakes were not his doing. “I think my colleague Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The only way is [for] the players to alter the attitude. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have seen a difference.” Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were with the coach, also responded quantitatively: “100%.” “We persist in trying to solve it in the dressing room,” he elaborated. “We understand that the [outside] chatter will not be productive so it is about attempting to sort it out in there.” “I think the gaffer has been superb. I myself have a excellent connection with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the sequence of games where we tied a few, we had some very productive conversations among ourselves.” “Everything concludes in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe talking as much about poor form as his own predicament.