Xabi Alonso Treading a Precarious Path at the Bernabéu Despite Squad Support.

No offensive player in Los Blancos' history had endured without a goal for as long as Rodrygo, but eventually he was released and he had a message to deliver, performed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had not scored in nine months and was commencing only his fifth game this term, beat custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma to give them the opening goal against Pep Guardiola's side. Then he wheeled and charged towards the sideline to hug Xabi Alonso, the manager under pressure for whom this could signal an even greater liberation.

“This is a tough moment for him, just as it is for us,” Rodrygo stated. “Results aren’t coming off and I wanted to prove the public that we are together with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo spoke, the lead had been lost, a defeat taking its place. City had turned it around, taking 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso noted. That can transpire when you’re in a “fragile” state, he added, but at least Madrid had reacted. On this occasion, they could not pull off a comeback. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played 11 minutes all season, hit the crossbar in the dying moments.

A Suspended Judgment

“The effort fell short,” Rodrygo admitted. The question was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to keep his role. “We didn't view it as [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 demonstrated that we’re supporting the coach: we have performed creditably, given 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so judgment was withheld, consequences delayed, with matches against Alavés and Sevilla on the horizon.

A Different Form of Defeat

Madrid had been overcome at home for the second match in four days, perpetuating their poor form to a mere pair of successes in eight, but this was a somewhat distinct. This was Manchester City, as opposed to a La Liga opponent. Stripped down, they had competed with intensity, the simplest and most harsh criticism not aimed at them in this instance. With eight men out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a converted penalty, nearly earning something at the death. There were “a lot of very good things” about this display, the manager said, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Muted Reaction

That was not entirely the case. There were spells in the closing 45 minutes, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At full time, a portion of supporters had done so again, although there was in addition some applause. But primarily, there was a subdued stream to the doors. “It's to be expected, we accept it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso stated: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were moments when they cheered too.”

Squad Unity Is Strong

“I have the support of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he stood by them, they backed him too, at least for the public. There has been a rapprochement, talks: the coach had listened to them, perhaps more than they had adapted to him, finding somewhere not quite in the center.

Whether durable a fix that is remains an matter of debate. One little incident in the after-game press conference seemed significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s suggestion to do things his way, Alonso had allowed that notion to remain unanswered, replying: “I share a good connection with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is saying.”

A Starting Point of Fight

Most importantly though, he could be pleased that there was a spirit, a response. 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-interest, but in this climate, it was meaningful. The intensity with which they played had been too – even if there is a temptation of the most basic of standards somehow being elevated as a type of positive.

In the build-up, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a strategy, that their shortcomings were not his doing. “In my view my teammate Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The sole solution is [for] the players to improve the attitude. The attitude is the key thing and today we have observed a change.”

Jude Bellingham, asked if they were behind the coach, also replied in numbers: “100%.”

“We’re still attempting to work it out in the changing room,” he said. “We know that the [outside] noise will not be helpful so it is about attempting to fix it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the coach has been great. I individually have a excellent relationship with him,” Bellingham concluded. “Following the sequence of games where we drew a few, we had some really great conversations among ourselves.”

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