Bale Blasts Madrid’s Locker Room Ego: Alonso Couldn't Contain the Storm

Bale on Alonso and Madrid's Ego Management

In England, the fallout from Xabi Alonso's departure from Real Madrid remains a hot topic. This was the topic most discussed on Champions League night, not so much about Arbeloa, but about the reasons and motives behind the Basque coach's exit.

Pundits and Bale's Live Commentary from Spurs Stadium

According to a report in the Spanish outlet Sport, trusted voices such as Jamie Carragher and Thierry Henry weighed in, with Bale appearing live on English television from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium while commenting on Spurs' match against Borussia Dortmund.

Bale on Alonso: 'Xabi Alonso? I'm not surprised. I understand well how Real Madrid works: if results don't come, even if there isn't a need for many failures, you're out of the project. Alonso was a fantastic coach; what he achieved at Bayer Leverkusen was impressive, he won titles and coached the team superbly.'

He added that the Basque coach's mistake was perhaps expecting to be a traditional coach at Madrid: 'But when you reach Real Madrid, you don't really need to be a traditional coach. More than being a coach, you need to be a manager of egos in the locker room. You have to calm down the inflated ego. You don't need a lot of tactical work, because you have stars in the locker room who can change the course of games in an instant.'

These remarks summarize the harsh environment at Real Madrid, where technical ability alone is not enough to stay; managing the stars and delivering immediate results remains the decisive factor for a coach's fate.

Punchline 1: If ego management were a sport, Real Madrid would have a golden boot in psychology and a trophy cabinet of therapists.

Punchline 2: In that locker room, even the trophies wear sunglasses to hide from the glare of big egos.