Alonso Navigating a Fine Tightrope at the Bernabéu Amidst Dressing Room Backing.

No attacker in the club's annals had endured without a goal for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but finally he was unleashed and he had a declaration to broadcast, acted out for public consumption. The Brazilian, who had not scored in nine months and was commencing only his fifth match this campaign, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to hand his team the lead against Manchester City. Then he wheeled and charged towards the touchline to greet Xabi Alonso, the boss on the edge for whom this could represent an profound relief.

“It’s a challenging moment for him, just as it is for us,” Rodrygo stated. “Results aren’t coming off and I wanted to show people that we are together with the coach.”

By the time Rodrygo addressed the media, the advantage had been surrendered, a setback ensuing. City had come back, going 2-1 ahead with “not much”, Alonso observed. That can happen when you’re in a “delicate” situation, he continued, but at least Madrid had reacted. On this occasion, they could not engineer a comeback. Endrick, on as a substitute having played very little all season, hit the crossbar in the dying moments.

A Delayed Judgment

“It wasn’t enough,” Rodrygo said. The dilemma was whether it would be sufficient for Alonso to hold onto his role. “We didn't view it as [this was a trial of the coach],” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated, but that was how it had been framed publicly, and how it was felt privately. “We have shown that we’re with the manager: we have given a good account, provided 100%,” Courtois added. And so the final decision was reserved, consequences delayed, with fixtures against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A Different Kind of Defeat

Madrid had been defeated at home for the second occasion in four days, perpetuating their recent run to two wins in eight, but this seemed a more respectable. This was the Premier League champions, as opposed to a La Liga opponent. Simplified, they had shown fight, the simplest and most critical accusation not levelled at them on this night. With a host of first-teamers out injured, they had lost only to a opportunistic strike and a spot-kick, nearly salvaging something at the final whistle. There were “a lot of very good things” about this showing, the boss stated, and there could be “no criticism” of his players, tonight.

The Stadium's Muted Response

That was not completely the complete picture. There were moments in the closing 45 minutes, as irritation grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had voiced its disapproval. At the final whistle, some of supporters had continued, although there was also sporadic clapping. But mostly, there was a muted stream to the exits. “That’s normal, we accept it,” Rodrygo said. Alonso added: “There's nothing that doesn't occur before. And there were moments when they applauded too.”

Dressing Room Unity Is Strong

“I sense the confidence of the players,” Alonso said. And if he backed them, they backed him too, at least in front of the cameras. There has been a coming together, conversations: the coach had listened to them, maybe more than they had adapted to him, reaching somewhere not precisely in the compromise.

Whether durable a fix that is continues to be an matter of debate. One seemingly minor incident in the after-game press conference felt significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s counsel to follow his own path, Alonso had permitted that implication to linger, answering: “I have a good rapport with Pep, we understand each other well and he understands what he is implying.”

A Basis of Fight

Most importantly though, he could be pleased that there was a fight, a pushback. Madrid’s players had not given up during the game and after it they stood up for him. Part of it may have been for show, done out of professionalism or self-preservation, but in this climate, it was significant. The intensity with which they played had been equally so – even if there is a risk of the most elementary of requirements somehow being elevated as a kind of success.

In the build-up, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a plan, that their failings were not his responsibility. “In my view my teammate Aurélien put it perfectly 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 key thing and today we have witnessed a change.”

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

“We’re still striving to solve it in the dressing room,” he elaborated. “We know that the [outside] noise will not be helpful so it is about striving to resolve it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the gaffer has been excellent. I myself have a excellent rapport with him,” Bellingham added. “Following the sequence of games where we drew a few, we had some honest conversations behind the scenes.”

“Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso philosophized, maybe referring as much about poor form as everything.