{"id":3680,"date":"2025-11-27T03:30:53","date_gmt":"2025-11-27T04:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/?p=3680"},"modified":"2025-11-27T11:16:43","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T11:16:43","slug":"the-hours-before-were-very-productive-real-madrid-coach-xabi-alonso-reacts-to-olympiakos-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/2025\/11\/27\/the-hours-before-were-very-productive-real-madrid-coach-xabi-alonso-reacts-to-olympiakos-win\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The hours before were very productive\u2019  \u2013 Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso reacts to Olympiakos win"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!-- Article Start --><\/p>\n<p>Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has suggested that the union between him and his players has grown closer after a dramatic 4-3 win over Olympiakos. It was Los Blancos first ever win in Greece, and Alonso was very much in need of the win to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-espana.net\/2025\/11\/25\/there-are-things-i-havent-liked-in-the-last-three-games-but-xabi-alonso-on-real-madrid-form\">snap a three-game winless streak<\/a>, but also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-espana.net\/2025\/11\/25\/xabi-alonso-dressing-room\">ease talk of a broken dressing room<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Despite struggling to control the game throughout, and finding it impossible to shut down Olympiakos at the back, Alonso\u2019s side did deliver their best offensive performance of the season. Mbappe\u2019s four goals were the headline, but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-espana.net\/2025\/11\/26\/real-madrid-player-ratings-v-olympiakos-xabi-alonso-marks-as-vinicius-and-mbappe-steal-the-show\">Vinicius Junior also showed his best form of the season<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe hours beforehand have been very positive and productive; they have helped us to continue growing, to cope with difficult moments, and I found the unity of the players to be very positive,\u201d Alonso told <a href=\"https:\/\/as.com\/futbol\/champions\/xabi-alonso-sabemos-que-habra-momentos-para-aguantar-y-no-deshacernos-f202511-n\/\">Diario AS<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"XABI ALONSO, RUEDA DE PRENSA completa tras el OLYMPIACOS 3 - REAL MADRID 4 | CHAMPIONS\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/c31pyYytLeE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019ve been very positive, very productive. They\u2019ve helped us to keep growing, to try and break the cycle, which we\u2019ve managed to do. And to learn how to cope with difficult moments. Very positive. Like the things we\u2019ve talked about, the unity the players have, their commitment\u2026 and this is the only way. Besides the three points, I\u2019m left with positive things that have happened behind the scenes.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Alonso responds to lack of control and defensive issues<\/h2>\n<p>Even if the result was a positive for Real Madrid, and the offensive output, the Basque manager will have been aware that criticism of their game management was coming. The first question was about Real Madrid\u2019s lack of control in the game.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFirst, I want to emphasize the most important thing: the three points. They\u2019re vital not only for the standings but also for breaking our three-game winless streak. We weren\u2019t feeling good. The game had all sorts of moments. We came out strong and went 1-0 up in the 8th minute, I think. But we stayed calm, confident, and mature enough not to lose our heads. And we were able to turn the result around comfortably.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" class=\"wp-image-324942 has-webp lazyload\" style=\"height:auto;max-width: 1200px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"Vinicius and Mbappe destroyed Olympiakos.\" data-src=\"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Mbappe-Vinicius.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image via Stephane Mahe \/ Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cIn the second half, there were all sorts of moments. They pressed hard, and we needed to adjust a bit, like maintain possession for longer periods. But the game is over now, and I\u2019ll take away the three points (smiles). And now we have to focus on the league.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was also put to Alonso that Real Madrid conceded 19 shots, more than the 13 they had, while Olympiakos also had more shots on goal (8) than Los Blancos (5).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe obviously need to improve a little in everything. In holding firm when the opponent is pushing forward, in being strong, in staying together. But there were moments in the first half when we did really well; and we have to focus on that. Because when we didn\u2019t\u2026 we\u2019ll improve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need that defensive solidity, combined with the finishing we showed today. We\u2019d been coming off matches where we were struggling to score\u2026 and then, Vini\u2019s disallowed goal was a real shame. But today was about winning. We did it, we broke that streak a little. And now we want to do the same in the league.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" class=\"wp-image-324946 has-webp lazyload\" style=\"height:auto;max-width: 1200px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"Alonso on the touchline against Olympiakos.\" data-src=\"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Xabi-Alonso-Greexe.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image via Agencias<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>A point of inflection for Real Madrid?<\/h2>\n<p>After a barren run, in which Real Madrid managed just two goals, both coming from set pieces in that three-game run, they exhibited some of their talent again. Despite the communion between him and his players before the match, and the result, Alonso was not yet willing to call it a turning point.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll see. Time will tell. We had a good feeling\u2026 and we shared some things. Regarding the match, we came here to do what we wanted, in a complicated context, with injuries and what happened during the game. And we\u2019ll take that away from it. This is football, and we have to think about the next one. Now we have a visit to Girona, then we go to Bilbao\u2026 the schedule, exceptionally, I don\u2019t know if we\u2019ll play five or six games away from home. It\u2019s something that doesn\u2019t happen very often. But we\u2019re going to face it.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"es\" dir=\"ltr\"><img src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83e\udec2\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height:auto;height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.0.3\/72x72\/1fac2.png\"> \u00a1El abrazo de Vinicius y Xabi Alonso al t\u00e9rmino del partido!<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\udcfb\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height:auto;height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.0.3\/72x72\/1f4fb.png\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/PartidazoCOPE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#PartidazoCOPE<\/a><br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/AVTepRSER8\">pic.twitter.com\/AVTepRSER8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 El Partidazo de COPE (@partidazocope) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/partidazocope\/status\/1993813784893509766?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 26, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3>A weight of Alonso\u2019s shoulders?<\/h3>\n<p>The Bsaque manager also assured that on a personal level, he was handling things just fine.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, no, no. I was handling it much more calmly than you might expect. I\u2019m no novice at this, and I know the road is long. And that it\u2019s not always a bed of roses. You have to know how to navigate difficult twists and turns without losing your mind. You have to be critical, demanding of yourself, and acknowledge your mistakes; but also know that there\u2019s always another game. And that you always have to look ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- Article End --><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-espana.net\/2025\/11\/27\/xabi-alonso-real-madrid-olympiakos\">&#8216;The hours before were very productive&#8217;  &#8211; Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso reacts to Olympiakos win<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.football-espana.net\">Football Espa\u00f1a<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has suggested that the union between him and his players has grown closer after a dramatic 4-3 win&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3682,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3680"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3680"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3685,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3680\/revisions\/3685"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3682"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/piquant-burotic.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}