Xabi Alonso Walking a Thin Path at the Bernabéu Even With Player Backing.

No offensive player in Real Madrid’s history had experienced without a goal for as extended a period as Rodrygo, but finally he was released and he had a message to deliver, performed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in an extended drought and was starting only his fifth match this campaign, beat goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to hand his team the opening goal against the English champions. Then he wheeled and charged towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the coach under pressure for whom this could prove an even greater relief.

“This is a challenging period for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Things aren't working out and I wanted to show the public that we are united with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been lost, a setback taking its place. City had turned it around, going 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso remarked. That can transpire when you’re in a “delicate” condition, he elaborated, but at least Madrid had fought back. Ultimately, they could not pull off a turnaround. Endrick, introduced off the bench having played a handful of minutes all season, hit the bar in the dying moments.

A Reserved Judgment

“The effort fell short,” Rodrygo admitted. The question was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to keep his job. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois remarked, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was felt privately. “Our performance proved that we’re behind the coach: we have given a good account, offered 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so judgment was postponed, consequences pending, with matches against Alavés and Sevilla looming.

A Distinct Type of Loss

Madrid had been defeated at home for the second match in four days, extending their uninspiring streak to a mere pair of successes in eight, but this felt a somewhat distinct. This was a European powerhouse, as opposed to a La Liga opponent. Streamlined, they had actually run, the simplest and most harsh accusation not levelled at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a converted penalty, nearly earning something at the end. There were “numerous of very good things” about this performance, the head coach argued, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Ambivalent Response

That was not entirely the case. There were spells in the second half, as discontent grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At the final whistle, a portion of supporters had done so again, although there was also sporadic clapping. But for the most part, there was a subdued flow to the exits. “We understand that, we comprehend it,” Rodrygo commented. Alonso stated: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were instances when they clapped too.”

Squad Support Stands Firm

“I have the support of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he stood by them, they supported him too, at least in front of the media. There has been a unification, talks: the coach had listened to them, maybe more than they had embraced him, meeting a point not precisely in the middle.

How lasting a solution that is remains an open question. One seemingly minor incident in the post-match press conference seemed notable. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s suggestion to stick to his principles, Alonso had allowed that implication to remain unanswered, answering: “I have a good connection with Pep, we know each other well and he knows what he is talking about.”

A Starting Point of Reaction

Crucially though, he could be content 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. This support may have been for show, done out of professionalism or mutual survival, but in this context, it was important. The intensity with which they played had been as well – even if there is a temptation of the most elementary of expectations somehow being elevated as a kind of achievement.

Earlier, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a vision, that their mistakes were not his responsibility. “I believe my teammate Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to change the attitude. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have witnessed a shift.”

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

“We are continuing attempting to solve it in the changing room,” he elaborated. “We know that the [outside] speculation will not be beneficial so it is about trying to fix it in there.”

“In my opinion the coach has been great. I myself have a excellent connection with him,” Bellingham stated. “Following the sequence of games where we tied a few, we had some really great conversations internally.”

“Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, perhaps talking as much about poor form as his own predicament.