Shrill Whistles alongside Fawning Praise, but Still Extreme Heat for Alonso
NO REPRIEVE FOR XABI ALONSO
Heading into midweek's encounter with the Premier League champions, the position of Xabi Alonso as head coach seemed as up in the air as a Spanish omelette tossed in a pan. Just a handful of matches into his reign, the only major stain on the 44-year-old’s copybook was an unacceptable heavy defeat against Atlético. However, from the beginning of November, Los Blancos have only won three victories in nine outings, with arguably their worst results being stalemates against supposed La Liga cannon fodder, culminating in Sunday’s embarrassing loss at the Bernabéu to Celta Vigo.
In Europe's Bigger Cup, they still look set to secure an all-important top eight spot despite their loss at the hands of City, a loss that was met with shrill whistles from the crowd by demanding supporters that had witnessed their knack-ravaged team play reasonably well.
"When you don’t win at home such a reaction is possible," sighed the coach regarding the response from the notoriously demanding crowd. "The team persevered, we fought until the end and despite all the problems we have [with injuries] everyone left it all on the pitch. Today I have nothing to criticise. The results over the past two months haven’t been good, not up to our standards. We’re self-critical, but must continue working and believing it will pass."
Amid speculation the club's overpaid prima donnas are not enamored with Alonso’s insistence on tactical drills, endure long-winded video presentations and compulsory mandatory evening seminars on the economic history of fishing in Galicia, there was plenty of public backing for the beleaguered boss.
After netting the first goal, the Brazilian forward high-fived his manager by the sideline, while both Thibaut Courtois and Jude Bellingham offering supportive post-match references in front of the TV cameras. "The boss has been excellent," stated Bellingham, in an act of excessive flattery he might do well to replicate next time he’s on England duty. "I myself have a fantastic rapport with him, many of the guys do as well. After the first run of games where we drew a few, we held great conversations within the group. Recently, we’ve just let ourselves down again. But nobody is downing tools, nobody is complaining, moaning, believing our campaign is finished."
While it would be unheard of for the UK press to twist Bellingham's words to fit a narrative, it could be argued that by saying that “a lot” of his teammates have a good relationship with the coach, the midfielder was tacitly implying that a significant number do not. The Brazilian winger has evidently had disagreements with the manager and the winger is said to have told the club's hierarchy he will not sign a new deal while Alonso remains in charge. One wonders what the Brazilian thought about the next day's Spanish press, which gave Alonso a free pass for this defeat while laying the blame squarely at Viní’s wasteful feet.
STATEMENT OF THE DAY
"Free speech and privacy rights are fundamental rights. No supporter surrenders those rights just because they cross a border. This measure introduces an intimidating environment of monitoring that directly contradicts the welcoming, open spirit the tournament is supposed to represent and it should be scrapped immediately" – Ronan Evain, the head of Football Supporters Europe, condemns a proposed policy that would require travelers heading to the United States for the GWC to disclose information about their social media profiles.