Alonso praises Madrid players' attitude

Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso said his players were giving it their all as their slump continued in a 2-1 defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Alonso, who took over as Real manager in June, has come under pressure after winning twice in eight games in all competitions.

Alonso was forced to field a makeshift back line due to injuries to key defenders such as Eder Militao, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dani Carvajal and Dean Huijsen, as well as striker Kylian Mbappe.

“We’re dealing with injuries, but our players are giving it their all, so we have nothing to complain about today. I really appreciate the attitude of the players on a daily basis, and we have to keep going,” he said.

Madrid started brightly against City, opening the scoring through Rodrygo, who registered his first goal since March.

But in the space of 10 minutes they conceded from a corner after goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois fumbled, allowing Nico O’Reilly to pounce. Minutes later Antonio Ruediger gave away a penalty after wrestling Erling Haaland to the ground.

As the game wore on and Madrid failed to capitalise on several chances, the crowd grew restless and the team were whistled off at fulltime.

Alonso described that reaction as normal and said he was prepared to be self-critical of what he described as a mixed performance.

“When you don’t win at home, (whistling) can happen, but there have been other times when they have supported us,” he said.

Real Madrid next play against Alaves in LaLiga on Sunday.