Manager Alonso Navigating a Precarious Tightrope at Real Madrid Amidst Player Endorsement.

No forward in Los Blancos' history had gone scoreless for as long as Rodrygo, but finally he was unleashed and he had a declaration to deliver, executed for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had failed to score in nine months and was starting only his fifth appearance this season, beat custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the lead against Pep Guardiola's side. Then he spun and ran towards the touchline to hug Xabi Alonso, the boss in the spotlight for whom this could prove an profound relief.

“It’s a difficult moment for him, similar to how it is for us,” Rodrygo commented. “Performances aren’t coming off and I sought to demonstrate people that we are as one with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the lead had been lost, a defeat taking its place. City had turned it around, going 2-1 ahead with “very little”, Alonso remarked. That can occur when you’re in a “fragile” condition, he elaborated, but at least Madrid had fought back. Ultimately, they could not complete a comeback. Endrick, on as a substitute having played 11 minutes all season, struck the crossbar in the final seconds.

A Reserved Judgment

“It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo admitted. The dilemma 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 insisted, but that was how it had been framed publicly, and how it was perceived internally. “We have shown that we’re supporting the manager: we have given a good account, given 100%,” Courtois added. And so the final decision was postponed, consequences suspended, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Different Form of Loss

Madrid had been defeated at home for the second match in four days, extending their recent run to two wins in eight, but this seemed a more respectable. This was the Premier League champions, rather than a La Liga opponent. Simplified, they had actually run, the most obvious and most critical accusation not aimed at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a converted penalty, nearly securing something at the end. There were “numerous of very good things” about this display, the head coach stated, and there could be “no reproach” of his players, on this occasion.

The Fans' Muted Reaction

That was not completely the full story. There were periods in the second half, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had whistled. At full time, a section of supporters had repeated that, although there was also pockets of appreciation. But for the most part, there was a quiet flow to the subway. “It's to be expected, we accept it,” Rodrygo said. Alonso added: “It’s nothing that hasn’t happened before. And there were moments when they clapped too.”

Squad Unity Stands Evident

“I sense the backing of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they supported him too, at least towards the cameras. There has been a unification, conversations: the coach had listened to them, perhaps more than they had accommodated him, finding somewhere not precisely in the center.

How lasting a solution that is continues to be an matter of debate. One seemingly minor exchange in the after-game press conference seemed significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s suggestion to stick to his principles, Alonso had allowed that implication to remain unanswered, replying: “I share a good connection with Pep, we understand each other well and he understands what he is talking about.”

A Basis of Reaction

Above all though, he could be satisfied that there was a spirit, a reaction. Madrid’s players had not abandoned their coach during the game and after it they publicly backed him. Part of it may have been for show, done out of professionalism or mutual survival, but in this context, it was important. The commitment with which they played had been as well – even if there is a risk of the most basic of standards somehow being framed as a form of success.

In the build-up, Aurélien Tchouaméni had argued the coach had a vision, that their failings were not his responsibility. “I think my teammate Aurélien nailed it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The sole solution is [for] the players to change the attitude. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have witnessed a change.”

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

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

“In my opinion the manager has been great. I individually have a great connection with him,” Bellingham added. “After the run of games where we drew a few, we had some really great conversations among ourselves.”

“All things ends in the end,” Alonso concluded, possibly speaking as much about poor form as anything else.