Although his neck is still hanging by a thread, Xabi Alonso faced the penultimate press conference of the year somewhat more relaxed than in … his most recent appearances. The Real Madrid coach appealed to beat Sevilla to start 2026 “with energy and optimism”, insisted that he continues to maintain a “close relationship, trust, respect and affection” with the club despite the ups and downs of play and results and avoided assigning a rating for the work done to date. «The grades, at the end of the course. We’re still halfway through and it’s early. Furthermore, it’s not my turn to give myself the grade,” he said in the preview of the duel against Sevilla corresponding to the seventeenth day of the League.
«It is the last game of the year, of this demanding block and we want to finish well. We want to link the third victory and leave with a good feeling to start 2026 with energy and optimism to face all the fronts that we are going to have. The opponent is demanding, they demand a lot, they play with one-on-one situations, the players go to the duel a lot. They are good with the ball. “We play at home and we want people to enjoy,” said the Real Madrid coach in an intervention before the media in which he stressed that he has a “long road” ahead in which “there will be good and not so good moments.”
Xabi Alonso wanted to convey an image of confidence despite the visible suffering he has been experiencing in recent weeks. “I’m fine. With desire, with energy, with strength. We want to get through the year well, it has been a very demanding block and tomorrow we want to finish it well to go into the break better and start 2026 with strength,” said the Gipuzkoan, who also assured that he did not feel uncomfortable due to the need to have to appear so frequently before the press. «It’s part of the job. Don’t think I come here to suffer. I carry it very normally, these are things that have always happened. If you think that this job does not have moments of all kinds, you are wrong,” he said.
«We know that we always aspire for everything and we know what the final objective is. We are all united, from the top to the bottom, from the president to the player,” added the Real Madrid coach, who took away the images in which several members of the bench were seen with a relaxed attitude on Wednesday while Talavera threatened the whites’ place in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey. «I haven’t seen them. At that moment what we wanted was to get through the tie, we achieved it and since yesterday we have been thinking about Sevilla,” he said.
Satisfied with Rodrygo
He expressed his joy for the good moment that Rodrygo is going through, author of goals against Manchester City and Alavés. «It has been very good news to see in these two games everything that Rodrygo has given us, the balance he has given, he gives continuity to the game, he partners well and we have to reach it. It’s what we want. Not only the right profile, he can also play in the middle and left lane. “He’s in a good moment, I’m very happy for him because he deserves it,” he said.
It downplayed the fact that Vinicius has not scored since October 4. «It’s a matter of games and moments. It has been very close and I have no idea what will happen. Hopefully it will be tomorrow,” said Xabi Alonso before a match for which he could recover players like Camavinga, Alaba, Mendy and Asencio, although he did not want to take for granted the presence of all of them in the squad against Sevilla: “There have been players who have been able to participate today. Tomorrow morning we will decide. We are waiting for you all because we need you. “The more we recover, the better.”
He also referred to Sevilla’s last victory at the Santiago Bernabéu 17 years ago, which cost Bernd Schuster his job as coach of Real Madrid, an unflattering precedent that he doesn’t even want to think about. «My goal is to win the game, that’s what’s in my head. “I had no idea about that data,” he said.
