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“We are a collective, a single entity, and we are all in this as one,” the Real Madrid coach declared, maybe affirming a tad forcefully. “When you’re Real Madrid coach you’re ready,” he continued on the eve before the English champions step back into the Santiago Bernabéu for another instalment of a contemporary rivalry. “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 change immediately, and definitively: this chance is an imperative, too.

Urgent Meetings After Dismal Setback

Following Madrid’s woefully inadequate 2-0 home defeat on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “formed his own assessments,” and he was not alone. Late into the night, emergency discussions persisted, the club’s leadership reaching their own verdicts after a mere one victory in five league games. Their assessments were divergent and while radical changes are temporarily shelved, patience is finite, the names of candidates already circulating. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso said here

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” the French midfielder remarked. “A 2-0 defeat to Celta indicates an issue that lies with us, not the manager.”

A Quick Deterioration After Initial Promise

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it might be his final one at a club where a state of emergency is perpetually looming after a few setbacks, where even sharing points is insufficient, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed evolved rapidly, even if the seeds of the problem were there from the start. Hailed as a tactical disciplinarian, precisely the required remedy after a season of permissiveness and underachievement, Alonso was counter-cultural at a star-driven institution.

When Madrid triumphed in El Clásico in late October, they established a five-point lead at the top. They had won 12 of 13 competitive games, although the defeat was emphatic: 5-2 at Atlético. It also revealed cracks. Taken off after 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior stormed off down the tunnel, seemingly ready to quit the club. In a letter a few days later he apologised to everyone except Alonso. From the club's leadership, rather than backing the coach, there was silence.

Frictions Coming to Light

Internally, the verdict was evident: Alonso shouldn’t have taken Vinícius off. Asked here if he would repeat that decision, Alonso answered: “The intent behind that question eludes me. When a situation on the pitch demands a choice, I make it.” Strains had been laid bare, a separation between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had voiced his discontent openly. The puzzle pieces weren't aligning as they should. A common complaint began to surface about all the directives, the video analysis, the long sessions. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Over a week after the clásico, Madrid were beaten by Liverpool, beginning a run of two wins in seven. Able to play direct, they beat Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those drew at Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to mend divisions or at least mask the problems, to restore tranquility. Focus turned on the footballers for the first time.

A Short-Lived Rapprochement

In Bilbao, where they had been assembled a day early, it seemed some middle ground had been found; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. Reconciliation was orchestrated when Vinícius embraced the coach as he departed. A couple of days' rest followed. A few days after, though, Celta defeated them and so it falls apart once more.

That it is public knowledge that Alonso’s future is in doubt is as notable 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 injustice, not even truly convincing himself, Madrid were dreadful against Celta: an absence of character, no attitude, no structure.

The Gaffer: The Easiest Target

But the simplest fix, 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 refocus on the match, which he did with nearly each answer. The briefest response he gave might have been the most revealing, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the whole squad was behind him, Alonso replied in a single word: “yes.”

“Being Madrid manager is not about changing [the culture]; it is about adapting,” Alonso continued. “We know the culture of Real Madrid pretty well; that is why it is the biggest club in the world. You have to adapt, learn a lot, interact with the players. Some days are good, some not so good. We have to face that with energy and positivity, that is the only way to turn things around.”

It was when he was asked if he felt by himself that Alonso talked of a team, a club, that goes hand in hand, and when attention was turned to the question of endorsement or the deficit 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.”