Xabi Alonso Treading a Fine Line at the Bernabéu Even With Player Endorsement.

No attacker in Los Blancos' record books had gone failing to find the net for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but eventually he was freed and he had a declaration to deliver, performed for the world to see. The Brazilian, who had not scored in nine months and was beginning only his fifth match this season, beat custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma to give them the opening goal against Manchester City. Then he turned and sprinted towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the coach in the spotlight for whom this could prove an even greater relief.

“This is a tough time for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo said. “Things are not going our way and I aimed to prove the public that we are together with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been taken from them, another loss taking its place. City had reversed the score, going 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso remarked. That can happen when you’re in a “sensitive” condition, he continued, but at least Madrid had fought back. This time, they could not complete a turnaround. Endrick, brought on having played very little all season, struck the bar in the closing stages.

A Suspended Judgment

“It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo admitted. The question was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to retain his job. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois insisted, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “Our performance proved that we’re behind the manager: we have played well, provided 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so the final decision was reserved, sentencing suspended, with matches against Alavés and Sevilla on the horizon.

A More Credible Kind of Defeat

Madrid had been defeated at home for the second match in four days, extending their poor form to a mere pair of successes in eight, but this felt a more respectable. This was Manchester City, not a La Liga opponent. Simplified, they had actually run, the most obvious and most critical accusation not aimed at them in this instance. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a penalty, coming close to securing something at the end. There were “many of very good things” about this performance, the boss argued, and there could be “no blame” of his players, on this occasion.

The Stadium's Mixed Response

That was not always the case. There were moments in the closing 45 minutes, as frustration grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At full time, a section of supporters had done so again, although there was in addition pockets of appreciation. But for the most part, there was a quiet procession to the subway. “That’s normal, we understand it,” Rodrygo noted. Alonso stated: “There's nothing that hasn’t happened before. And there were times when they cheered too.”

Squad Backing Stands Strong

“I have the backing of the players,” Alonso affirmed. And if he backed them, they stood by him too, at least for the public. There has been a coming together, discussions: the coach had considered them, perhaps more than they had embraced him, reaching a point not precisely in the center.

Whether durable a remedy that is continues to be an open question. One seemingly minor moment in the after-game press conference seemed significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s advice to do things his way, Alonso had permitted that implication to linger, answering: “I have a good connection with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is implying.”

A Foundation of Resistance

Most importantly though, he could be pleased that there was a spirit, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not abandoned their coach during the game and after it they stood up for him. Some of this may have been for show, done out of professionalism or self-interest, but in this climate, it was important. The commitment with which they played had been equally so – even if there is a temptation of the most basic of standards somehow being framed as a form of positive.

The previous day, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a vision, that their mistakes were not his fault. “In my view my teammate Aurélien put it perfectly in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to improve the approach. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have seen a change.”

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

“We are continuing attempting to work it out in the changing room,” he elaborated. “We know that the [outside] chatter will not be productive so it is about attempting to fix it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the gaffer has been superb. I individually have a great relationship with him,” Bellingham concluded. “After the run of games where we drew a few, we had some honest conversations internally.”

“Everything passes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, possibly speaking as much about adversity as everything.