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“We are a collective, a single entity, and we are all in this as one,” the manager declared, perhaps asserting somewhat excessively. “If you coach Real Madrid, you are prepared for anything,” he continued on the day before Pep Guardiola's side return to the Santiago Bernabéu for a new instalment of a contemporary rivalry. “I’m looking forward to what’s coming and that starts tomorrow, [an opportunity] to turn round the anger. In our heads, there’s only City. In football, for better or worse, things change quickly”. A defeat and things could change immediately, and permanently: this opportunity is an imperative, too.

Urgent Meetings After Desperate Loss at the Bernabéu

Following Madrid’s utterly disappointing 2-0 home defeat on Sunday, Alonso said he had “formed his own assessments,” and he was in plentiful company. Long after the final whistle, emergency discussions carried on, the club’s board forming their own opinions after a mere one victory in five league games. Their analyses were not the same and while severe measures are temporarily shelved, tolerance has limits, the names of potential replacements already circulating. “You have to face those situations but my head’s only on the game, things I can control,” Alonso commented

“Certainly the trainer devised an effective approach, but when it comes down to it, the players execute on the field,” one of the squad's leaders said. “Losing by two goals to Celta points to a deficiency in our performance, not the coach's planning.”

A Swift Decline After Initial Success

City will be his 28th game in charge of Madrid and it might be his final one at a club where a turmoil is always just two losses around the corner, where even draws will not do, and there’s always someone else who can coach. Things have indeed shifted swiftly, even if the origins of the trouble were there from the start. Sold as a tactical disciplinarian, the ideal solution after a season of permissiveness and underachievement, Alonso was an anomaly at a squad-centric organization.

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 setback was significant: 5-2 at Atlético. It also exposed fissures. Replaced in the 72nd minute, Vinícius Júnior headed directly for the dressing room, seemingly ready to quit the club. In a missive a few days later he expressed regret to all apart from Alonso. At the executive level, rather than backing the coach, there was silence.

Strains Emerging

Behind the scenes, the verdict was clear: Alonso was wrong to remove Vinícius off. Asked here if he would make the same call, Alonso answered: “I am unsure of the purpose of that query. If, in the moment, I believe a decision is required on the field, I will make it.” Frictions had been laid bare, a separation between trainer and a portion of the team. Federico Valverde too had voiced his discontent openly. The components weren't meshing as they should. A familiar lament began to slip out about all the directives, the video analysis, the lengthy training. Who did he think he was, the manager?!

Over a week after the clásico, Madrid were defeated at Anfield, starting a sequence of two wins in seven. When adopting a straightforward approach, they defeated Olympiakos and Athletic Bilbao but between those were held by Rayo, Elche and Girona. After a delay, talks were held to repair cracks or at least paper over the issues, to establish peace. Focus was directed at the footballers for the first time.

A Temporary Reconciliation

In Bilbao, where they had been brought together a day early, it seemed some compromise had been found; Alonso meeting their needs more than they did his. Reconciliation was displayed when Vinícius greeted the 44-year-old as he departed. A couple of days' rest followed. Subsequently, though, Celta beat 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 player absences and injustice, not even truly believing his own words, Madrid were terrible against Celta: an absence of character, poor commitment, no structure.

The Manager: The Easiest Target

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 bring it back to the match, which he did with nearly each answer. The shortest answer he gave might have been the most telling, had he truly believed it. Asked if he felt the complete roster was behind him, Alonso replied in a one word: “yes.”

“Being Madrid manager is not about changing [the culture]; it is about adapting,” Alonso added. “We know the culture of Real Madrid pretty well; that is why it is the biggest club in the world. You have to adapt, learn a lot, interact with the players. Some days are good, some not so good. We have to face that with energy and positivity, that is the only way to turn things around.”

It was when he was asked if he felt by himself that Alonso talked of a unit, a club, that goes in unison, and when attention was turned to the question of support or the lack of it 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.”