Real Madrid have gone three matches without a win . After their 1-0 defeat against Liverpool and the 0-0 draw at Rayo Vallecano before the international break, the Merengues' return to action was difficult, with a 2-2 draw away to newly promoted Elche , a side who could easily have won the match. Their five-point lead over Barça after the Clasico has melted away, and the Catalans are now just one point behind their Madrid rivals in the La Liga standings . More than the results, it's the quality of play that is worrying.
Real Madrid have gone three matches without a win . After their 1-0 defeat against Liverpool and the 0-0 draw at Rayo Vallecano before the international break, the Merengues' return to action was difficult, with a 2-2 draw away to newly promoted Elche , a side who could easily have won the match. Their five-point lead over Barça after the Clasico has melted away, and the Catalans are now just one point behind their Madrid rivals in the La Liga standings . More than the results, it's the quality of play that is worrying.
And if there's one man who's attracting the most criticism, it's undoubtedly Xabi Alonso . Certainly, some players underperformed again, like Trent Alexander-Arnold and Rodrygo, while a player like Kylian Mbappé, who has often saved his coach in recent months, was unsuccessful. But clearly, this disappointing draw is primarily Alonso's responsibility in the eyes of the media. His starting eleven, with Fran Garcia playing on the left wing and Rodrygo's inclusion in the starting lineup despite his poor form for months, had already caused a stir on social media before the match, and subsequent events proved these choices were not the right ones.
The match in Elche, a turning point
The performance offered by Kylian Mbappé's team, despite Alonso's arrival as manager bringing promises of improved play, has been very disappointing, and no one seems to know what the Basque tactician's game plan or philosophy truly is. This is without even mentioning the well-known problems with certain key players in the dressing room , such as Fede Valverde, Jude Bellingham, and Vinicius Jr. While a dismissal is unlikely in the coming days barring any major surprises, it seems difficult to imagine Alonso reversing the trend and breaking out of this negative spiral. This match in Elche was a turning point, and it ended in a huge disappointment.
Worried by the coach's choices and the team's lack of progress, Madrid-based journalists and pundits had some very strong opinions after the match. "Xabi Alonso is going through a difficult period; I don't see a good connection with the players. We saw it at Anfield, Vallecas, and Elche; I get the feeling the team isn't playing for anything ," Javi Herraez told Cadena SER . "Even he doesn't believe in what he's doing. Xabi Alonso is starting to resemble Rafa Benitez ," commented pundit Juanma Rodriguez on El Chiringuito . These are just a few reactions among dozens, even hundreds, and one clear and unanimous conclusion: hardly anyone in Madrid believes in Xabi Alonso anymore.
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