Manager Alonso Navigating a Thin Path at the Bernabéu Even With Dressing Room Support.

No forward in Los Blancos' annals had experienced failing to find the net for as such a duration as Rodrygo, but at last he was unleashed and he had a message to broadcast, executed for the cameras. The Brazilian, who had been goalless in an extended drought and was commencing only his fifth match this term, beat shot-stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure the opening goal against the English champions. Then he turned and sprinted towards the bench to hug Xabi Alonso, the coach on the edge for whom this could represent an even greater release.

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

By the time Rodrygo made his comments, the advantage had been lost, a defeat ensuing. City had come back, taking 2-1 ahead with “minimal”, Alonso observed. That can transpire when you’re in a “fragile” situation, he continued, but at least Madrid had responded. On this occasion, they could not engineer a turnaround. Endrick, on as a substitute having played a handful of minutes all season, struck the woodwork in the closing stages.

A Suspended Judgment

“It proved insufficient,” Rodrygo conceded. The dilemma was whether it would be adequate for Alonso to hold onto his position. “We didn’t feel that [this was a trial of the coach],” veteran keeper Thibaut Courtois insisted, but that was how it had been framed publicly, and how it was felt privately. “We demonstrated that we’re supporting the coach: we have given a good account, provided 100%,” Courtois concluded. And so the final decision was postponed, any action suspended, with games against Alavés and Sevilla imminent.

A More Credible Type of Loss

Madrid had been overcome at home for the second match in four days, extending their recent run to two wins in eight, but this was a somewhat distinct. This was the Premier League champions, rather than a lesser opponent. Streamlined, they had shown fight, the simplest and most harsh accusation not aimed at them this time. With multiple players out injured, they had lost only to a scrambled finish and a spot-kick, nearly salvaging something at the end. There were “many of very good things” about this display, the manager said, and there could be “no blame” of his players, not this time.

The Fans' Mixed Response

That was not entirely the complete picture. There were spells in the second half, as discontent grew, when the Santiago Bernabéu had whistled. At full time, a portion of supporters had repeated that, although there was likewise pockets of appreciation. But primarily, there was a muted procession to the subway. “We understand that, we accept it,” Rodrygo noted. Alonso stated: “There's nothing that hasn’t happened before. And there were times when they clapped too.”

Player Backing Remains Firm

“I feel the backing of the players,” Alonso said. And if he supported them, they stood by him too, at least towards the public. There has been a unification, talks: the coach had accommodated them, perhaps more than they had adapted to him, meeting common ground not precisely in the middle.

The longevity of a solution that is continues to be an matter of debate. One seemingly minor incident in the post-match press conference felt significant. Asked about Pep Guardiola’s counsel to do things his way, Alonso had permitted that idea to remain unanswered, answering: “I have a good rapport with Pep, we understand each other well and he is aware of what he is talking about.”

A Basis of Resistance

Crucially though, he could be satisfied that there was a spirit, a pushback. Madrid’s players had not abandoned their coach during the game and after it they defended him. Some of this may have been performative, done out of obligation or self-preservation, but in this context, it was meaningful. The effort with which they played had been too – even if there is a risk of the most fundamental of expectations somehow being promoted as a kind of positive.

In the build-up, Aurélien Tchouaméni had stated firmly the coach had a strategy, that their shortcomings were not his fault. “In my view my colleague Aurélien said it in the press conference,” Raúl Asencio said post-match. “The only way is [for] the players to alter the attitude. The attitude is the linchpin and today we have observed a difference.”

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

“We are continuing striving to solve it in the locker room,” he said. “We know that the [outside] speculation will not be productive so it is about trying to resolve it in there.”

“Personally, I feel the gaffer has been superb. I personally have a excellent rapport with him,” Bellingham added. “After the spell of games where we tied a few, we had some honest conversations internally.”

“Every situation concludes in the end,” Alonso mused, maybe speaking as much about a difficult spell as everything.