Xabi Alonso Treading a Precarious Line at the Bernabéu Even With Player Backing.

No offensive player in the club's history had endured scoreless for as extended a period as Rodrygo, but finally he was unleashed and he had a message to send, executed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in almost a year and was starting only his fifth appearance this campaign, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to give them the advantage against the English champions. Then he spun and charged towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the manager under pressure for whom this could represent an more significant release.

“This is a difficult period for him, like it is for us,” Rodrygo stated. “Performances are not going our way and I sought to prove the public that we are united with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been surrendered, another loss ensuing. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “minimal”, Alonso observed. That can happen when you’re in a “delicate” condition, he elaborated, but at least Madrid had responded. On this occasion, they could not pull off a comeback. Endrick, on as a substitute having played a handful of minutes all season, hit the woodwork in the closing stages.

A Delayed Judgment

“The effort fell short,” Rodrygo said. The issue was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to retain his job. “We didn’t feel that [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated, but that was how it had been presented externally, and how it was understood behind closed doors. “We demonstrated that we’re supporting the manager: we have given a good account, provided 100%,” Courtois affirmed. And so the final decision was postponed, consequences suspended, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Different Type of Defeat

Madrid had been beaten at home for the second time in four days, perpetuating their poor form to two wins in eight, but this was a little different. This was Manchester City, as opposed to a lesser opponent. Stripped down, they had competed with intensity, the easiest and most critical criticism not levelled at them this time. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a messy goal and a spot-kick, coming close to earning something at the death. There were “a lot of very good things” about this performance, the head coach said, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, tonight.

The Fans' Muted Response

That was not always the case. There were periods in the second half, as discontent grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had jeered. At full time, a section of supporters had repeated that, although there was also some applause. But mostly, there was a subdued flow to the exits. “That’s normal, we accept it,” Rodrygo said. Alonso remarked: “It’s nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were times when they clapped too.”

Squad Unity Remains Evident

“I sense the confidence of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they stood by him too, at least towards the public. There has been a rapprochement, discussions: the coach had accommodated them, perhaps more than they had adapted to him, meeting somewhere not exactly in the middle.

The longevity of a solution that is continues to be an unresolved issue. One small exchange in the post-match press conference appeared significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s counsel to do things his way, Alonso had let that implication to remain unanswered, answering: “I have a good relationship with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is implying.”

A Basis of Reaction

Crucially though, he could be pleased that there was a resistance, a response. Madrid’s players had not let Alonso fall during the game and after it they stood up for him. Some of this may have been performative, done out of professionalism or mutual survival, but in this climate, it was significant. The commitment with which they played had been equally so – even if there is a danger of the most elementary of expectations somehow being elevated as a type of positive.

The previous day, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a strategy, that their mistakes were not his doing. “In my view my teammate Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said after full-time. “The only way is [for] the players to change the attitude. The attitude is the crucial element and today we have seen a change.”

Jude Bellingham, questioned if they were behind the coach, also replied in numbers: “100%.”

“We’re still attempting to figure it out in the locker room,” he elaborated. “We know that the [outside] chatter will not be beneficial so it is about attempting to fix it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the coach has been great. I myself have a excellent connection with him,” Bellingham stated. “Following the run of games where we were held a few, we had some honest conversations behind the scenes.”

“All things ends in the end,” Alonso mused, maybe referring as much about adversity as anything else.