The Champions League is about to face Juventus, followed by the El Clasico and the duel with Liverpool. Real Madrid faces a critical week. The Athletic wrote an article talking about Real Madrid now. TA believes that Real Madrid's mentality problem has brought extra pressure to Alonso.
TA wrote:
After Real Madrid lost 2-5 to Atletico Madrid in September, serious conversations took place within the first team.
Anonymous sources who witnessed the incident revealed that there were candid exchanges between the players, especially sharp criticism of the attitude and commitment of the young players during preparations for the game.
This was the first major test the new lineup faced, but they messed up.
Although Real Madrid has since returned to the right track, it currently leads Barcelona by two points in La Liga and has won both matches in the Champions League group stage. But in fact, the team has not experienced a real serious test yet.
Because of this, as Alonso's team is about to enter the devil's schedule, outsiders are worried that leadership and team mentality issues may resurface. Any mistakes will put huge pressure on the coach.
A club insider compared Alonso's current situation to "a player facing a yellow card crisis at the beginning of the game."
To understand Real Madrid's concerns, we need to look back at the past.
Between 2014 and 2024, Real Madrid won six Champions League trophies, raising the total number of Champions League trophies to 15, far exceeding the second-place AC Milan's record of seven championships.
In the past ten years, Real Madrid's lineup has been changing constantly, core players have come and gone, and coaches have changed like a revolving door. But there is always continuity: Kroos and Vazquez have won five of them, while Modric, Carvajal and Nacho have been involved throughout.
The 33-year-old Carvajal is the only one who is still in the team. As the longest-serving player, he follows the Bernabeu tradition and serves as the captain. Courtois, who is the same age, is slightly less qualified, and 27-year-old Valverde is the vice-captain.
After winning the championship in 2024, three heavyweight veterans left the team: Kroos retired, Nacho joined Khobar Kudisiya, and Joselu, who had only played for one year but had a strong voice in the room, switched to the Qatar League.
This summer, two more heroes said goodbye: Modric went to AC Milan, and Vazquez joined Leverkusen.
During Ancelotti’s second tenure from 2021 to 2025, the presence of veterans has always been a key factor. During this period, Real Madrid won two Champions Leagues, two La Liga titles and the Copa del Rey.
Real Madrid has an unwritten rule: players over 30 usually only get one-year contract extensions, and negotiations are mostly conducted at the end of the season. Whenever the club consults Anshuai for his opinion, the Italian always supports retaining veterans. This is not only a competitive consideration, but also an ecological need for the club.
At the end of the 2023-2024 season, a source involved in Real Madrid's daily operations believes that it is "vital" to retain at least one of Modric or Kroos. Similar concerns resurfaced this year when Modric's stay was undecided and Vazquez might leave the team.
The person said: "If both of them leave, the situation will be very difficult. This is not a technical problem, but a hidden danger in the atmosphere. If Carvajal is left to support the overall situation, he will collapse within a month."
Although the atmosphere in the room was worrying last season, the club ultimately did not renew the contracts of Modric and Vazquez.
In the 2024-25 season, Real Madrid has gone from what the staff calls the "best locker room" to a collective filled with more self-awareness and friction. The championship-less ending of the season intensified the conflict.
In May, a first-line player confessed to The Athletic: "Let's see if Alonso dares to take over this mess."
He did come. Real Madrid introduced Alonso not only to improve their record, but also to reshape the order of the dressing room.
Informed sources revealed that Alonso discovered that "there are many bad habits in the dressing room." Alonso focused on building a new culture, emphasizing basic requirements such as punctuality and high-intensity training.
A person close to a certain team member commented: "They changed from Anshuai, who barely participated in training, to Alonso, who demonstrated personally."
Although there are still veterans in the current team, the depth of leadership is not what it used to be.
Five new players came with the new coach this summer: youth training forward Gonzalo was promoted to the first line, Huizen joined from Bournemouth, Alexander-Arnold joined from Liverpool, River Plate's Mastantono and Benfica's A fee joined. The average age of the new players is below 22 years old.
Although Huizen had a bright start, he has repeatedly made controversial mistakes recently. Sources say the coaching staff specifically asked him to improve his concentration.
Although the 27-year-old Arnold is the most experienced new player this summer, the club believes that he is still shy and needs more time to adapt.
Although Mbappe has shown leadership in games this season, he has not yet reached Ronaldo's benchmark level on a daily basis. Valverde, who has been involved in rumors recently, leads by example with his professionalism. Chuameni, who joined in 2022, is also considered to be growing into a leader.
However, players such as Bellingham still need to fill the leadership vacuum left by meritorious players who have left the team.
Alonso’s team believes that now is a good opportunity to gather morale and reap the dividends of reform. At present, Real Madrid has only made one major mistake against Atletico Madrid this season, but the ripples caused are reminiscent of the 0-4 defeat in Paris in the Club World Cup semi-finals in July.
If key battles suffer another setback, the credibility of the team's program will be questioned. The schedule around Christmas is even more complicated, putting Real Madrid under pressure to win the Spanish Super Cup.