Shaken, Real Madrid must shine in the Champions League to regain momentum | OneFootball

Two victories in seven games reflect a performance below expectations for Real Madrid, who were booed by their fans on Sunday after a 2-0 defeat to Celta de Vigo at the Santiago Bernabéu. Only a significant victory in the Champions League on Wednesday against Manchester City could give coach Xabi Alonso a lifeline.

The shortcomings are evident in the coach's project, who recently arrived at the Bernabéu and may lose his job if the team is defeated by the English side, according to the Spanish press.

Real Madrid can't take off, almost always being saved by a lethal Kylian Mbappé, who scored 25 goals in 21 games and leads the scoring charts in both the Spanish Championship and the Champions League.

Problems in the Locker Room

Alonso's strategy crumbled amid a power struggle with the players, according to the Spanish press.

“The team is an apathetic group revolving around Mbappé, whose goals are just a mask for the crisis,” wrote the newspaper AS on Sunday, after the defeat to Celta de Vigo.

“If he takes a break, there's no alternative,” it continued. Kylian Mbappé led Real Madrid in a run of 13 wins in 14 games but also stood out in recent weeks when his team suffered negative results.

After an unstable start following his arrival from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2024, the French national team captain reached his best level in the second half of last season.

In 2025, the star scored 55 goals, four less than the record set in 2013 by Cristiano Ronaldo, his childhood idol and the greatest scorer in Real Madrid's history.

Three Sent Off

Xabi Alonso arrived with the goal of establishing himself as a coach with a different profile from Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane, who are considered excellent in people management but with less emphasis on tactical and technical approaches.

With Mbappé as his only untouchable outfield player, Alonso started the season alternating Vinícius Júnior with Rodrygo and Dani Carvajal with Trent Alexander-Arnold. And while Jude Bellingham was recovering from shoulder surgery, Arda Güler shone in midfield.

The team achieved positive results, but discontent among some players grew. The breaking point occurred when Vini publicly expressed his irritation after being substituted in the October ‘El Clásico’, which Real Madrid won 2-1 at the Bernabéu.

Additionally, Bellingham's return after the injury forced Alonso to change the starting lineup, along with Federico Valverde's reluctance to play at right-back.

A series of away games, due to an NFL game being hosted at the Bernabéu, contributed to the team's recent drop in performance. After a 1-1 draw with Girona at the end of November, Mbappé urged the team to “show who we are” and “change this dynamic.”

“He does many fundamental things in terms of leadership, influence, and helping his teammates, and that's very important on a daily basis,” said Alonso.

Real Madrid defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-0 on Wednesday, and according to the newspaper AS, the players were motivated by the promise of two days off in case of victory.

But this rest time may have contributed to the defeat against Celta de Vigo, with the Merengue team desperate and suffering three send-offs: Fran García, Álvaro Carreras, and Endrick (who was on the bench).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.