The paradox of today's Real is striking. Kylian Mbappe is banging in goals at a pace reminiscent of Messi, Ronaldo and Lewandowski in their peak years, yet the team is bogged down in its play, dropping points and living in a state of constant anxiety. Talk about Xabi Alonso's future is already thick in the air, the dressing room is divided, and the old code of Los Blancos, embodied for many years by Luka Modric, once again reminds everyone: this club does not forgive weakness or prolonged slumps.
A Run of Misfires and a 'Catastrophe' in Girona
The last few weeks have been painful for the Madrid side. Real have won only one of their last five matches in all competitions, and the 1–1 draw with Girona in matchday 14 of La Liga became a tipping point. Inside the club this result is described not just as a misstep but as a genuine "catastrophe" – especially against the backdrop of a team that is, objectively, "playing very badly".
At the same time, Los Blancos remain near the top of the table and, after 14 rounds, sit second with 33 points, but for the Madrid club the result alone has never been the only criterion. Sources close to the coaching staff and the dressing room admit that the situation is complicated and that turning it around quickly will be extremely difficult.
Another worrying aspect is being highlighted as well: according to people within the inner circle, the head coach's messages, ideas and demands do not always reach the players fully. The connection between coach and squad seems to be misfiring, and for Real that has always been a sign of a possible fracture.
The Dream Trio That Breaks the Balance
One of the key criticisms is directed not so much at Alonso himself as at the very concept of the team. Inside the club there is a belief that the attacking trio of Mbappe – Vinicius Junior – Jude Bellingham is simply too difficult to fit into a truly balanced side.
The logic is simple: all three are used to being the main man, demanding the ball and playing with maximum freedom. Yet someone has to work off the ball, lead the high press, track back into defence and close down spaces. In a line-up where three superstars simultaneously require special conditions, the structure inevitably suffers: compactness is lost, the balance between attack and defence collapses and the midfield is left exposed.
One insider familiar with the situation puts it bluntly: the problem lies not only – and not so much – with Xabi Alonso; with this kind of star-studded attack it is very hard to build a team that is equally reliable with and without the ball.
A Dressing Room at a Crossroads and Alonso's Future
At the same time, the players themselves are far from united in their views on the coach. Back at the end of October it was reported that Alonso's individual approach and some of his game principles did not sit well with a significant part of the starting XI. Some players still do not fully believe in the path chosen by the Spaniard – they dislike the emphasis in positional attacks, the pressing demands and the way roles are distributed.
Others, on the contrary, are convinced that making the coach the main scapegoat would be unfair. In their opinion, the root of the problems lies in the squad's make-up and in the sky-high expectations, when a star-studded team is expected to produce perfect football as soon as tomorrow.
Against this backdrop, every upcoming derby and every big match turns into an exam for Alonso not only in terms of results but also in terms of image. The clash with Atletico on December 3 could become a marker of whether this Real are capable of pulling themselves together at a decisive moment and producing the kind of football that restores the trust of both the stands and the inner circle.
The Mbappe Phenomenon: Historic Numbers Amid an On-Field Crisis
On an individual level, Real possess an argument that in any other context would simply inspire awe. In 2025 Kylian Mbappe became only the fourth player in the 21st century to score 60 goals for club and country in a calendar year.
In the match against Girona he took his tally to 60: 53 goals for Real in all competitions and another seven for the France national team. Only three names sit above him on this elite list – Cristiano Ronaldo, Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi, who in different seasons have finished the year with over 60 goals, while Messi once reached a truly astronomical mark of 91.
This is where the main drama of the season lies: when you have a player in your team who is following in the footsteps of the greatest goalscorers of the era, you are, by definition, expected to dominate. But instead of a feeling of absolute power, anxiety and doubt still swirl around Real.
Modric's Code: Life With No Right to Mediocrity
Against the backdrop of today's turbulence, Luka Modric's words sound like a brief survival guide to life at the Madrid club. The Croatian frankly described the rules of life at Santiago Bernabeu: mediocrity is not tolerated here, and anyone who drops below the required standard is quickly pushed into the background.
According to Modric, there are always people at Real who are waiting for you to slip up so they can take your place, and this is seen as a natural part of competition. Constant expectations and the need to prove your worth every single day create enormous pressure, but it is precisely this pressure that shapes true champions.
Modric himself endured that race – he spent 13 seasons at Real before leaving for Milan in the summer of 2025. His path is a reminder to the current squad that only those who can adapt to a new wave of competition and maintain their level even when coaches, systems and teammates change around them manage to survive in Madrid.
The Coming Weeks as a Test of the Madrid Giant's DNA
Today Real find themselves at a point where several lines of pressure intersect: a star-studded attack searching for balance; a coach whose ideas have not yet been fully embraced; a dressing room split in its opinions; and a club code that does not allow for long transition periods.
The upcoming matches will test the authenticity of that very "winner's DNA" that Madridistas have been proud of for decades. If Xabi Alonso succeeds in getting his principles across to the team, sorting out the play without the ball and integrating the Mbappe – Vinicius – Bellingham trio into a coherent system, the current crisis could quickly be relegated to memory.
If, however, the gap between the coach's ideas and the stars' expectations continues to grow, the club will have to take tough decisions – whether that means changes in the backroom staff or in the squad. At Real they know only too well that you cannot live off past glories forever, and even Mbappe's historic records will not save anyone if the team as a whole continues to "play very badly".
