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“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” the manager declared, possibly asserting a little too much. “When you’re Real Madrid coach you’re ready,” he remarked on the day before the English champions visit once more the Santiago Bernabéu for another instalment of a very modern classic. “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 shift instantly, and permanently: this chance is an imperative, too.

Urgent Meetings After Desperate Home Defeat

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 home defeat on Sunday, Alonso stated he had “reached some conclusions,” and he was far from the only one. Into the early hours, emergency discussions carried on, the club’s leadership reaching their own verdicts after a single win in five league games. Their diagnoses were different and while radical changes are being postponed, tolerance has limits, the names of possible successors already circulating. “These are scenarios you must deal with, yet my mind is fixed only on the game, on what I can influence,” Alonso said here

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” Aurélien Tchouaméni remarked. “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 Initial Promise

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it could be his last at a club where a state of emergency is always just two losses around the corner, where even sharing points is insufficient, and there’s perpetually an alternative who can coach. Things have indeed shifted swiftly, even if the origins of the trouble were there from the start. Presented as a structured planner, precisely the required remedy after a season of laissez-faire and failure, Alonso was counter-cultural at a players’ club.

When Madrid won the clásico in late October, they established a five-point lead at the top. They had won 12 of 13 competitive games, although the setback was significant: 5-2 at Atlético. It also exposed fissures. Substituted on 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior stormed off down the tunnel, threatening to walk straight out the club. In a missive a few days later he apologised to everyone except Alonso. Institutionally, rather than reinforcing the manager, there was silence.

Frictions Coming to Light

Behind the scenes, the assessment was clear: Alonso was wrong to remove Vinícius off. Asked here if he would do that again, Alonso replied: “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 laid bare, a rift between manager and certain squad members. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The components weren't meshing as they should. A common complaint began to slip out about all the orders, the videos, the lengthy training. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Nine days after the clásico, Madrid were beaten by Liverpool, beginning a run of two wins in seven. Capable of a more direct style, they beat Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those tied with Rayo, Elche and Girona. Belatedly, talks were held to mend divisions or at least cover cracks, to restore tranquility. Focus shifted to the footballers for the first time.

A Temporary Truce

In Bilbao, where they had been gathered a day early, it seemed some middle ground had been found; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. Rapprochement was orchestrated when Vinícius embraced the coach as he departed. Two days off followed. Four days later, though, Celta beat them and so it disintegrates anew.

That it is known that Alonso’s future is on the line is as significant as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be rebutted, but it is calculated. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about player absences and bad luck, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were dreadful against Celta: no identity, no attitude, no structure.

The Gaffer: The Easiest Target

But the most vulnerable point, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the on-pitch performance, overshadowed the preparation to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to bring it back to the match, which he did with virtually all his replies. The briefest response he gave might have been the most significant, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the whole squad was behind him, Alonso replied in a single word: “yes.”

“Managing Real Madrid doesn't involve transforming the culture; it requires fitting in,” Alonso continued. “The culture of Real Madrid is well-known to us; it's the reason for its status as the world's premier club. Adaptation, continuous learning, and player communication are key. There will be highs and lows. Meeting challenges with drive and a positive mindset is the only route to improvement.”

It was when he was asked if he felt alone that Alonso talked of a unit, a club, that goes in unison, and when attention was turned to the question of backing or its absence from above, he commented: “Our contact with the board is continuous, stemming from belief, solidarity, and care. We stand as one in this situation. Our mindset is geared to confront all obstacles: the team is cohesive, fully believing we can triumph tomorrow, with absolute certainty. It's the Champions League. The Bernabéu is our stage. The ambiance will be unforgettable. That fosters a distinct vitality, particularly within the squad.”