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“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” the Real Madrid coach declared, maybe protesting a tad forcefully. “Being the manager of Real Madrid means you are always prepared,” he continued on the morning before Pep Guardiola's side visit once more the Santiago Bernabéu for the latest meeting of a frequent heavyweight clash. “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.” Losing and things could shift instantly, and permanently: this opportunity is an obligation, too.

Crisis Talks After Desperate Home Defeat

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 loss at their own stadium on Sunday, Alonso stated he had “formed his own assessments,” and he was in plentiful company. Long after the final whistle, urgent meetings persisted, the club’s leadership forming their own opinions after a mere one victory in five league games. Their diagnoses were different and while radical changes are being postponed, forbearance is running out, the names of potential replacements already in the public domain. “One must confront such circumstances, but my focus is solely on the match, on elements within my power,” Alonso stated in the press conference

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” one of the squad's leaders said. “If we lost 2-0 to Celta, there’s a problem that’s on us: it’s not the coach’s fault.”

A Quick Deterioration After Early Promise

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it may prove to be his farewell at a club where a crisis is perpetually looming after a few setbacks, where even ties are unacceptable, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed changed fast, even if the seeds of the problem were there from the start. Presented as a tactical disciplinarian, precisely the required remedy after a season of laissez-faire and failure, Alonso was a cultural shock at a players’ club.

When Madrid won the clásico in late October, they opened a five-point gap at the top. They had triumphed in twelve out of thirteen competitive games, although the defeat was emphatic: 5-2 at Atlético. It also highlighted flaws. Replaced in the 72nd minute, Vinícius Júnior stormed off down the tunnel, threatening to walk straight out the club. In a letter a few days later he expressed regret to all apart from Alonso. At the executive level, rather than backing the coach, there was silence.

Tensions Coming to Light

Within the dressing room, the conclusion was clear: Alonso was wrong to remove Vinícius off. Pressed on the issue if he would repeat that decision, Alonso answered: “I am unsure of the purpose of that query. If, in the moment, I believe a decision is required on the field, I will make it.” Tensions had been exposed, a disconnect between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had expressed his irritation publicly. The components weren't meshing as they should. A familiar lament began to surface about all the instructions, the film sessions, the extended practices. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

More than a week after the clásico, Madrid were beaten by Liverpool, beginning a run of two wins in seven. Able to play direct, they overcame Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those tied with Rayo, Elche and Girona. Belatedly, talks were held to mend divisions or at least mask the problems, to restore tranquility. Focus shifted to the footballers for the first time.

A Fragile Truce

In Bilbao, where they had been brought together a day early, it seemed some agreement had been reached; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. Rapprochement was staged when Vinícius hugged the 44-year-old as he departed. A brief break followed. Subsequently, though, Celta beat them and so it unravels again.

That it is understood that Alonso’s future is on the line is as significant as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be denied, but it is calculated. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about player absences and unfairness, not even truly convincing himself, Madrid were awful against Celta: an absence of character, poor commitment, an absence of tactical shape.

The Coach: The Most Obvious Solution

But the weakest link, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the on-pitch performance, was the central theme 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 almost every response. The shortest answer he gave might have been the most telling, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the entire team was behind him, Alonso replied in a single word: “yes.”

“Being Madrid manager is not about changing [the culture]; it is about adapting,” Alonso added. “We understand the ethos of Real Madrid thoroughly; it's what makes it the globe's greatest club. One must adjust, absorb knowledge, engage with the squad. Certain days bring success, others less so. We must confront this with vigor and optimism; it's the sole path to reversal.”

It was when he was asked if he felt isolated that Alonso talked of a collective, 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 commented: “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.”