Disrespectful Mbappe first to say goodbye to Alonso

Among the many unwritten rules and laws of football, one in particular stands out: the one who is first to come forward to pay tribute to a dismissed coach is usually the one who worked most against him during his tenure. It might be a sin to accuse Kylian Mbappe of carrying out sabotage in the Real Madrid dressing room during Xabi Alonso’s time in charge. But there are certainly grounds to talk about it. Perhaps also because one of the best players in the world, immediately after learning that Real Madrid had terminated Xabi Alonso’s contract, posted an emotional story on Instagram. He said goodbye with courteous words, writing that “it was an honor and a pleasure to learn from such a man”. That would not be strange at all if there hadn’t been months of a saga claiming that Mbappe was the leader of a faction that was never satisfied with Xabi’s methodology — that he was working against him and did not hesitate to undermine the authority of such a figure.

Alonso out of Real after eight months

Everything came to a head in Jeddah, after the defeat in the Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona. Millions of viewers around the world did not notice the detail, but those who were in the stadium did. Xabi Alonso wanted to remain dignified even in difficult moments and called on the Real Madrid players to form a guard of honor and congratulate their bitter rivals. He received no response. On the contrary, Mbappe was gesturing for him to move aside and head toward the dressing room. The other players were confused, although Raul Asensio wanted to follow the coach’s example. At the end of the saga, Xabi Alonso left the scene of the battle with his head almost lowered. To him — and to the club officials who saw the footage — it was clear that relations in the dressing room had been damaged.