Xabi Alonso Navigating a Fine Path at Real Madrid Despite Squad Backing.

No attacker in Los Blancos' history had experienced without a goal for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but finally he was released and he had a declaration to broadcast, executed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had failed to score in nine months and was beginning only his fifth match this season, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the advantage against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and charged towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the boss in the spotlight for whom this could represent an profound liberation.

“It’s a tough moment for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo said. “Things are not going our way and I sought to demonstrate everyone that we are as one with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been surrendered, a setback ensuing. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso observed. That can occur when you’re in a “delicate” condition, he elaborated, but at least Madrid had responded. Ultimately, they could not engineer a comeback. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played very little all season, rattled the woodwork in the final seconds.

A Reserved Sentence

“It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo conceded. The issue was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to hold onto his job. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois insisted, but that was how it had been framed publicly, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “Our performance proved that we’re supporting the manager: we have performed creditably, provided 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so judgment was postponed, sentencing suspended, with games against Alavés and Sevilla on the horizon.

A Different Type of Defeat

Madrid had been beaten at home for the second time in four days, perpetuating their uninspiring streak to two wins in eight, but this seemed a more respectable. This was a European powerhouse, as opposed to a domestic opponent. Streamlined, they had shown fight, the most obvious and most critical charge not aimed at them this time. With eight men out injured, they had lost only to a messy goal and a spot-kick, almost salvaging something at the final whistle. There were “a lot of very good things” about this performance, the head coach stated, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Mixed Reception

That was not entirely the case. There were periods in the latter period, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At full time, a section of supporters had repeated that, although there was in addition sporadic clapping. But primarily, there was a quiet flow to the subway. “We understand that, we accept it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso added: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were moments when they cheered too.”

Dressing Room Backing Is Evident

“I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he supported them, they backed him too, at least towards the public. There has been a unification, talks: the coach had considered them, perhaps more than they had embraced him, finding common ground not quite in the compromise.

The longevity of a solution that is remains an open question. One little incident in the post-match press conference felt notable. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s counsel to follow his own path, Alonso had allowed that implication to hang there, replying: “I have a good relationship with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is talking about.”

A Basis of Reaction

Most importantly though, he could be content that there was a fight, a response. Madrid’s players had not let Alonso fall during the game and after it they stood up for him. Some of this may have been for show, done out of professionalism or self-interest, but in this tense environment, it was significant. The effort with which they played had been as well – even if there is a risk of the most basic of expectations somehow being framed as a type of positive.

Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had insisted 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 key is [for] the players to alter the approach. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have observed a shift.”

Jude Bellingham, pressed if they were supporting the coach, also responded with a figure: “100%.”

“We’re still striving to work it out in the locker room,” he continued. “We understand that the [outside] noise will not be beneficial so it is about attempting to fix it in there.”

“I think the manager has been superb. I myself have a great connection with him,” Bellingham stated. “After the sequence of games where we drew a few, we had some honest conversations among ourselves.”

“All things passes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, maybe talking as much about a difficult spell as anything else.