Manager Alonso Treading a Fine Line at Real Madrid Even With Player Backing.

No attacker in the club's history had experienced scoreless for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but finally he was unleashed and he had a declaration to deliver, executed for the world to see. The Brazilian, who had failed to score in an extended drought and was commencing only his fifth game this season, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to give them the opening goal against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and charged towards the touchline to hug Xabi Alonso, the boss in the spotlight for whom this could signal an more significant relief.

“It’s a challenging time for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo stated. “Things aren’t coming off and I aimed to prove everyone that we are united with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo spoke, the advantage had been taken from them, a defeat following. City had reversed the score, taking 2-1 ahead with “minimal”, Alonso observed. That can occur when you’re in a “sensitive” state, he added, but at least Madrid had fought back. On this occasion, they could not engineer a recovery. Endrick, on as a substitute having played very little all season, hit the bar in the dying moments.

A Reserved Sentence

“It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo admitted. The issue was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to retain his position. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois stated, 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 coach: we have given a good account, given 100%,” Courtois added. And so the final decision was reserved, consequences delayed, with matches against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Distinct Type of Loss

Madrid had been overcome at home for the second time in four days, continuing their poor form to a mere pair of successes in eight, but this seemed a little different. This was the Premier League champions, not a La Liga opponent. Simplified, they had shown fight, the easiest and most damning criticism not aimed at them in this instance. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a penalty, coming close to securing something at the final whistle. There were “many of very good things” about this display, the boss stated, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight.

The Fans' Mixed Reception

That was not always the case. There were spells in the latter period, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At the final whistle, some of supporters had done so again, although there was likewise some applause. But primarily, there was a muted procession to the subway. “We understand that, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo noted. Alonso remarked: “There's nothing that is unprecedented before. And there were instances when they cheered too.”

Squad Unity Remains Firm

“I have the support of the players,” Alonso said. And if he backed them, they supported him too, at least for the public. There has been a rapprochement, talks: the coach had considered them, maybe more than they had accommodated him, reaching a point not exactly in the center.

The longevity of a fix that is continues to be an open question. One little incident in the after-game press conference felt significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s suggestion to follow his own path, Alonso had permitted that implication to hang there, responding: “I have a good rapport with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is saying.”

A Basis of Fight

Crucially though, he could be satisfied that there was a spirit, a response. Madrid’s players had not abandoned their coach during the game and after it they stood up for him. Part of it may have been for show, done out of obligation or self-preservation, but in this climate, it was important. The commitment with which they played had been too – even if there is a risk of the most fundamental of standards somehow being framed as a form of positive.

The previous day, Aurélien Tchouaméni had insisted the coach had a plan, that their failings were not his responsibility. “In my view my teammate Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The key is [for] the players to change the mindset. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have seen a difference.”

Jude Bellingham, questioned if they were with the coach, also replied with a figure: “100%.”

“We are continuing attempting to figure it out in the dressing room,” he continued. “We understand that the [outside] chatter will not be productive so it is about striving to fix it in there.”

“In my opinion the manager has been great. I personally have a excellent rapport with him,” Bellingham stated. “Following the spell of games where we drew a few, we had some very productive conversations internally.”

“All things ends in the end,” Alonso concluded, maybe speaking as much about a difficult spell as everything.