It took almost no time at all for Xabi Alonso to imprint his vision on Real Madrid. The former Bayer Leverkusen manager has proven one thing: if you want to play for Real Madrid, you have to play for Xabi Alonso. The two go hand-in-hand, and Alonso pulls all of the strings.
So far, no Real Madrid fan can critique that strategy. It's worked, and even with everything working against Real Madrid, they've had a perfect start to life under the club legend.
A few surprising names have cropped up as important players, and others, like Vinícius Júnior, have seen their squad roles reduced rather significantly.
But Xabi Alonso does not place Vinícius Júnior on a pedestal. That's been made quite evident; he needs to prove himself just as much as other players in the team.
Xabi Alonso brought Vinícius Júnior down a few levels to prove a point
When asked about Vinícius Júnior's reduced squad role, Xabi Alonso responded in a way that Vinícius Júnior fans would not like. He compared his situation to new Real Madrid player Franco Mastantuono.
“Franco [Mastantuono] wanted to carry on playing too. He said to me, ‘Are you taking me off?’ And I said, ‘Yes.’ Something similar happened with Vini. He wasn’t very happy, but neither was Franco.”
"It happens to everyone, but I’m very happy with Vinícius' performance. The schedule is demanding and we have to keep going.”
Alonso didn't need to let us behind the curtain as much as he did, but Real Madrid fans should appreciate the clarification here. The bottom line is that if Alonso doesn't want to give a player minutes, he doesn't need to.
Regardless, this is yet another indication that no Real Madrid player will be placed on a pedestal in this Xabi Alonso era. It's an even playing field now, with every Real Madrid player having an even chance of getting in the starting lineup.
In truth, this was needed. It might seem harsh for some players, but there should be no egos when players are working together to achieve the same goal. Particularly after how awfully last season went, Real Madrid needed a new approach to individual player management.
And look, the process has worked so far. Real Madrid fans might need to get used to seeing some new heroes, but it won't matter if the form continues going the way it's been going so far.