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“We are a united club, a team, and we all move forward together,” Xabi Alonso stated emphatically, perhaps asserting somewhat excessively. “Being the manager of Real Madrid means you are always prepared,” he added on the morning before Pep Guardiola's side visit once more the Santiago Bernabéu for the latest edition of a frequent heavyweight clash. “I anticipate the challenge ahead, starting tomorrow—an opening to redirect the disappointment. Our minds are fixed solely on City. Football, for better or worse, is a game of swift changes.” A defeat and things could change immediately, and for good: this chance is an obligation, too.

Crisis Talks After Poor Setback

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 setback on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “reached some conclusions,” and he was in plentiful company. Into the early hours, urgent meetings carried on, the club’s hierarchy forming their own opinions after a solitary triumph in five league games. Their assessments were different and while drastic decisions are temporarily shelved, forbearance is running out, the names of possible successors already in the public domain. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso commented

“Undoubtedly the manager prepared a solid strategy, but ultimately, we the footballers are the ones performing,” Aurélien Tchouaméni remarked. “Losing by two goals to Celta points to a deficiency in our performance, not the coach's planning.”

A Rapid Descent 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 always just two losses around the corner, where even ties are unacceptable, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed shifted swiftly, even if the seeds of the problem were there from the start. Presented as a tactical disciplinarian, the ideal solution after a season of laissez-faire and failure, Alonso was an anomaly at a squad-centric organization.

When Madrid triumphed in El Clásico in late October, they moved five points ahead at the top. They had won 12 of 13 competitive games, although the defeat was emphatic: 5-2 at Atlético. It also exposed fissures. Substituted on 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior marched straight down the tunnel, reportedly threatening to leave the club. In a missive a few days later he said sorry to all but Alonso. At the executive level, rather than supporting the trainer, there was a conspicuous quiet.

Tensions Brought to the Surface

Internally, the verdict was evident: Alonso ought not to have substituted Vinícius off. Questioned on this point if he would do that again, Alonso responded: “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.” Frictions had been exposed, a disconnect between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The pieces weren’t fitting as they should. A common complaint began to slip out about all the instructions, the video analysis, the extended practices. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Nine days after the clásico, Madrid were defeated at Anfield, beginning a run of two wins in seven. When adopting a straightforward approach, they beat Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those were held by Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to fix fault lines or at least cover cracks, 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 reached; Alonso yielding to their requests more than they did his. A thawing of relations was staged when Vinícius hugged the 44-year-old as he departed. Two days off followed. A few days after, though, Celta beat them and so it disintegrates anew.

That it is understood that Alonso’s future is on the line is as notable 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 fitness issues and injustice, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were dreadful against Celta: a lack of style, a deficient mentality, no structure.

The Gaffer: The Easiest Target

But the weakest link, 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 virtually all his replies. The shortest answer he gave might have been the most revealing, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the entire team was behind him, Alonso replied in a one word: “yes.”

“Being Madrid manager is not about changing [the culture]; it is about adapting,” Alonso added. “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 isolated that Alonso talked of a team, a club, that goes hand in hand, and when attention was turned to the question of support or the lack of it from above, he answered: “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.”