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“We are a united club, a team, and we all move forward together,” Xabi Alonso declared, possibly protesting somewhat excessively. “When you’re Real Madrid coach you’re ready,” he added on the day before the English champions return to 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 change immediately, and for good: this opportunity is an obligation, too.

Crisis Talks After Dismal Setback

Following Madrid’s utterly disappointing 2-0 home defeat on Sunday, Alonso said he had “reached some conclusions,” and he was not alone. Long after the final whistle, crisis talks persisted, the club’s hierarchy reaching their own verdicts after a single win in five league games. Their diagnoses were not the same and while radical changes are being postponed, patience is finite, the names of potential replacements already out. “One must confront such circumstances, but my focus is solely on the match, on elements within my power,” Alonso commented

“Undoubtedly the manager prepared a solid strategy, but ultimately, we the footballers are the ones performing,” Aurélien Tchouaméni stated. “If we lost 2-0 to Celta, there’s a problem that’s on us: it’s not the coach’s fault.”

A Swift Deterioration After Early Success

City will be his twenty-eighth outing in charge of Madrid and it might be his final one at a club where a crisis is never more than a couple of defeats away, where even draws will not do, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed changed fast, even if the roots of the crisis were there from the start. Sold as a structured planner, exactly what they needed after a season of permissiveness and underachievement, Alonso was a cultural shock at a players’ club.

When Madrid won the clásico in late October, they opened a five-point gap at the top. They had triumphed in twelve out of thirteen competitive games, although the setback was significant: 5-2 at Atlético. It also highlighted flaws. Replaced in the 72nd minute, Vinícius Júnior headed directly for the dressing room, threatening to walk straight out the club. In a missive a few days later he said sorry to all but Alonso. At the executive level, rather than backing the coach, there was silence.

Tensions Emerging

Within the dressing room, the verdict was clear: Alonso ought not to have substituted Vinícius off. Asked here if he would make the same call, Alonso answered: “The intent behind that question eludes me. When a situation on the pitch demands a choice, I make it.” Strains had been exposed, a separation between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had made his frustrations public. The puzzle pieces weren't aligning as they should. A common complaint began to emerge about all the directives, the film sessions, the extended practices. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

More than a week after the clásico, Madrid were overcome at Liverpool, starting a sequence of two wins in seven. Able to play direct, they overcame 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 establish peace. Focus was directed at the footballers for the first time.

A Fragile Reconciliation

In Bilbao, where they had been brought together a day early, it seemed some agreement had been reached; Alonso accommodating their demands more than they did his. Rapprochement was orchestrated when Vinícius embraced the 44-year-old as he departed. A couple of days' rest followed. Four days later, though, Celta overcame them and so it unravels again.

That it is known 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 deliberate. Alonso knows that. He also knows, for all that he tried to talk about fitness issues and bad luck, not even truly convincing himself, Madrid were terrible against Celta: a lack of style, a deficient mentality, an absence of tactical shape.

The Manager: The Simplest Fix

But the simplest fix, is always the manager, and Alonso’s future, more than the actual football, overshadowed the preparation to this game. However much the man who is still Madrid’s manager kept trying to redirect attention to the match, which he did with virtually all his replies. The most concise reply he gave might have been the most significant, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the complete roster was behind him, Alonso replied in a one word: “yes.”

“Managing Real Madrid doesn't involve transforming the culture; it requires fitting in,” Alonso continued. “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 unit, a club, that goes together, and when attention was turned to the question of endorsement or the deficit from above, he answered: “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.”