Xabi Alonso’s contractual future will hang by a very thin thread, increasingly thinner if possible, but the vestiges of the old Bernabéu also have something to say about the players. And, above all, about Vinicius.
As soon as the ball was put into circulation, in each Sevilla attack, white mistake or even any action that did not go well for the hosts, the stands whistled. They didn’t forgive a single one. Due to a mistake by Huijsen – again very dispersed -, due to an opportunity that escaped Isaac Romero or due to a dribble that Vini did not complete. To the minor, or major, whistles in the air in a in the Castellana.
The big upset went to the white number seven, the central protagonist of a Real Madrid career that marks a before and after since the classic in question, and who was fired in the 83rd minute with a great whistle, still with a distressing 1-0 for the locals. The Brazilian, unlike what happened in the classic, retired meekly, slowly, chewing up the anger of the stands. A bitter parade for him that marks a turning point in his relationship with his people, at least, in this moment of crisis. Curiously, this time, after handing the captain’s armband to Courtois, he greeted the coach whom he very seriously disavowed on Barcelona’s afternoon. He did not speak after the game, but he did make a decision: he changed his Instagram profile photo with Madrid and published one with Brazil.
“The fans are sovereign and free to give their opinion,” Xabi simply said, stating that he had not discussed the issue with the person affected.
The amphitheater had remained quite impassive in the last year despite the obvious drop in tension, but the crisis of the last month has awakened the sleeping wolf. In the midst of the great and irreversible internationalization of the venue, it is increasingly difficult to find the signs of that censorious stadium that did not forgive its people the saving of runs, the only non-negotiable in Chamartín, a place that has generated cold sweats for more than one Real Madrid player in history. However, the collapse of the team since the classic has been exhausting the patience of the cobblestones.
The anger was already evident in the outcome of the match two weeks ago against Celta, which ended up unleashing this great instability for Xabi, and three days later in the duel against Manchester City, where Vinicius was one of those named. Since then, Madrid won head-to-head in Vitoria and Talavera, two victories that, far from quieting the noise, have elevated it. And on the return home, the stands did not miss the opportunity to take their toll on the players and, of all people, the focus was especially on Vini.
The Brazilian, protagonist of the episode against Barcelona after which nothing has been the same in Madrid, is in people’s eyes. After a quarter of an hour, a routine action in which he could not go over the baseline of two rivals, the Bernabéu whistles went off. And it wasn’t the first time. A few minutes earlier, when they announced the lineups over the public address system, some whistles also emerged from the crowd.
The break, despite Bellingham’s 1-0 lead, did not calm everyone with the team (some whistles were heard again), and even less so when 10 minutes after the restart Courtois had already prevented three goals. After Sevilla’s fifth attempt in the second half, the Madrid cheering crowd broke out with a chant that used to be dedicated at the Bernabéu to Atlético as a mockery during the red and white’s worst times: “Throw him eggs.”
The change of Camavinga for Güler in the 72nd minute confirmed that the anger was not the same with everyone. The Turk, who is in the doldrums, was fired with lukewarm applause, but applause. The same did not happen to Vinicius.
As soon as he retired to the locker room, with Madrid in a hurry again despite the fact that Sevilla had been with one less player for a long time, he managed to equal Cristiano Ronaldo’s mark of 59 goals in 2013 with a penalty. Of course, the Portuguese achieved them in 50 games and 4,216 minutes, according to Opta’s records, while the Frenchman has needed 59 duels and 4,900 minutes. He had several chances to beat CR, but he was left wanting the night the Bernabéu targeted Vini, who has also not scored in 14 games.
