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The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/kibme37 on 2025-12-09 08:22:33+00:00.
Original Title: Xabi Alonso feels isolated, and his players are taking advantage of his vulnerability. He has recently become a political figure, attempting to win over the dressing room by offering concessions: shorter video sessions, untouchable stars, more days off, fewer tactical obligations.
In these 6 months of the Alonso era, the Real Madrid dressing room has not meshed well with him. He arrived to raise the bar, both in training and matches; to impose discipline and order in a dressing room that was spoiled and toxic; and to modernize the team’s style of play. As the weeks went by, the players grew increasingly frustrated with his tactical demands, high press, advanced defensive line, endless video sessions, and limited rest days. And Alonso, knowing he was losing the dressing room, gradually gave in, eventually offering them his full support, his arm, and whatever else they asked for.
The latest example is recent. The before and after the victory at San Mamés demonstrates the power of the dressing room. Traveling on Tuesday instead of Wednesday angered a good number of the players, and after the win against Athletic, Alonso granted them two days off, when only one had been planned. So the preparation for the match against Celta included only one training session, on Saturday. This is just one example of the many that have occurred since the Vinicius case erupted.
Until then, Alonso didn’t really know what it meant to coach Real Madrid. And that’s despite being a player for five years, and having witnessed how a coach like Mourinho lost the support of a large majority of his players when things started to go wrong. Now Alonso himself is experiencing firsthand the influence players have at Real Madrid, but he doesn’t understand why he was brought in if, at the first sign of trouble, the club looked the other way, as happened with Vinicius. That’s when Xabi understood that he had to manage 25 egos and put his coaching role aside. The beginning of the end.
Alonso believed that coaching on his knees would boost the dressing room, but usually, it’s quite the opposite. Everything that has happened in recent weeks has paved the way for what seems imminent: his dismissal.