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“This is a team, it is a club, and we all go together hand in hand,” the manager declared, possibly protesting a little too much. “Being the manager of Real Madrid means you are always prepared,” he remarked on the morning before Manchester City step back into the Santiago Bernabéu for another edition of a very modern classic. “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.” Failure and things could alter for good, and permanently: this moment is an duty, too.

Urgent Meetings After Dismal Loss at the Bernabéu

Following Madrid’s desperately poor 2-0 loss at their own stadium on Sunday, Alonso revealed he had “reached some conclusions,” and he was not alone. Late into the night, crisis talks carried on, the club’s board drawing their own conclusions after a single win in five league games. Their assessments were divergent and while radical changes remain on hold, tolerance has limits, the names of candidates already in the public domain. “These are scenarios you must deal with, yet my mind is fixed only on the game, on what I can influence,” Alonso commented

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” the French midfielder remarked. “If we lost 2-0 to Celta, there’s a problem that’s on us: it’s not the coach’s fault.”

A Rapid Deterioration After Initial Success

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it could be his last at a club where a crisis is always just two losses around the corner, where even draws will not do, and there’s invariably another candidate who can coach. Things have indeed changed fast, even if the origins of the trouble were there from the start. Hailed as a systems coach, exactly what they needed after a season of permissiveness and underachievement, Alonso was an anomaly at a star-driven institution.

When Madrid secured victory against Barcelona in late October, they established a five-point lead at the top. They had won 12 of 13 competitive games, although the defeat was emphatic: 5-2 at Atlético. It also revealed cracks. Substituted on 72 minutes, Vinícius Júnior headed directly for the dressing room, reportedly threatening to leave the club. In a missive a few days later he apologised to everyone except Alonso. From the club's leadership, rather than reinforcing the manager, there was a conspicuous quiet.

Strains Emerging

Internally, the verdict was clear: Alonso ought not to have substituted Vinícius off. Asked here if he would repeat that decision, Alonso responded: “The intent behind that question eludes me. When a situation on the pitch demands a choice, I make it.” Frictions had been brought to the surface, a rift between manager and certain squad members. Federico Valverde too had expressed his irritation publicly. The pieces weren’t fitting as they should. A typical grievance began to slip out about all the instructions, the video analysis, the lengthy training. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Nine days after the clásico, Madrid were overcome at Liverpool, beginning a run of two wins in seven. When adopting a straightforward approach, they beat Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those tied with 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 Temporary Rapprochement

In Bilbao, where they had been gathered a day early, it seemed some middle ground had been reached; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. Rapprochement was orchestrated when Vinícius hugged the 44-year-old as he departed. A couple of days' rest followed. Four days later, though, Celta beat them and so it falls apart once more.

That it is public knowledge that Alonso’s future is in doubt is as notable as the fact it is. If Madrid beat City, that can always be denied, but it is intentional. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about injuries and bad luck, not even truly convincing himself, Madrid were awful against Celta: a lack of style, poor commitment, an absence of tactical shape.

The Coach: The Simplest Fix

But the most vulnerable point, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the sporting matters, overshadowed the preparation to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to refocus on the match, which he did with nearly each answer. The briefest response he gave might have been the most significant, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the whole squad was behind him, Alonso replied in a one word: “yes.”

“Managing Real Madrid doesn't involve transforming the culture; it requires fitting in,” Alonso stated. “We understand the ethos of Real Madrid thoroughly; it's what makes it the globe's greatest club. One must adjust, absorb knowledge, engage with the squad. Certain days bring success, others less so. We must confront this with vigor and optimism; it's the sole path to reversal.”

It was when he was asked if he felt isolated that Alonso talked of a team, a club, that goes in unison, and when attention was turned to the question of endorsement or the deficit from above, he commented: “Dialogue with the leadership is ongoing, founded on trust, togetherness, and mutual respect. We are all united in this endeavor. We are psychologically prepared for any challenge: the squad is unified, certain of victory tomorrow, without a shadow of doubt. This is the Champions League. We are playing at the Bernabéu. The environment will be electric. That generates a unique dynamism, even among the players.”