Xabi Alonso spoke to the media after Real Madrid’s 2-2 draw with Elche at Estadio Martinez Valero on Sunday. He was asked about self-reflection, and whether the team has ‘fallen apart’, to which he said:
“We haven’t fallen apart. We’re still competing; the context of each match is different. The result is what matters, and we’re aware of that and self-critical. The spirit is good; we have to respond to adversity. This is Real Madrid. We live with criticism; we want to improve.”
Alonso on the streak
“It’s football. After a good run, we’ve had several results we didn’t want. We know what we want; we have to keep pushing forward. We’re not happy; we always want to win. We can’t be. There are many games left, so we need to focus on the next one by analysing what we did today.”
Alonso on the match
“I analyse everything after the matches, try to draw conclusions, and convey them to the players. Today, I felt we lacked consistency after the 1-1 equaliser. In the first half, we were working hard to take the lead. The team didn’t give up, though.”
Alonso on Vinicius Jr starting from the bench
“We had discussed it. We talk about it often. He understands; he knew the role he could play. We’ve done it before, like in Getafe. Today we’re not happy, but everyone is eager to get back on track.”
Alonso on the connection between the staff and players
“The connection is improving; we have more time and interact more, we know each other better. We’re all in the same boat; we celebrate victories. We suffer if we don’t win. The connection is good. We need to turn this situation around, starting with Athens.”
Alonso on Fran Garcia’s position
“Yes, it’s a regular position; he’s played a lot there. Those who stayed behind had more training time. We looked to create width on both flanks, to do something different. It was a shame that we conceded after the 1-1 equaliser; it was our moment to go for the comeback. We fought hard, we made it 2-2. We lacked that extra push after the 1-1.”
