Xabi Alonso Dreams Of White Christmas As Real Madrid Face Sevilla

Xabi Alonso

Underfire Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso will be hoping to remain in charge of Los Blancos over the Christmas break but must first oversee a Liga victory against Sevilla to sate the club's hierarchy.

Underfire Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso will be hoping to remain in charge of Los Blancos over the Christmas break but must first oversee a Liga victory against Sevilla to sate the club's hierarchy. Pressure has mounted on the Basque coach in recent weeks following a downturn in form, with speculation rife that Alonso would be shown the door should they lose at home to Manchester City in the Champions League last Wednesday. His side's battling performance in the subsequent 2-1 defeat to Pep Guardiola's team spared Alonso but on the back of two unconvincing wins against more modest opposition, Alonso's situation seems more perilous than ever.

Kylian Mbappe's scintillating form this term -- 28 goals in 23 outings in all competitions -- has carried Real, and Alonso was forced to deploy the Frenchman, who missed the loss against City with a broken finger, for the full 90 minutes against Alaves last weekend and then in the Copa del Rey against third-tier Talavera.

He netted three goals and provided an assist across both matches as Madrid edged Alaves 2-1 in the league, before scraping past Talavera 3-2 on Wednesday.

Mbappe's tally for the calendar year now stands at 58, one fewer than Cristiano Ronaldo's club record from 2013, with one match remaining on the schedule.

Despite maintaining their four-point gap to Liga leaders Barcelona and booking their spot in the last 16 of the Spanish Cup, Alonso's reliance on Mbappe while struggling to get the best of the rest of his star-studded squad will weigh no less heavily on the mind of club president Florentino Perez.

"The numbers are what they are but Rodrygo (Goes) has scored in both of the previous two games and we need more guys who have got that clinical edge," Alonso said after beating Talavera.

"(Now) We have just one focus, which is Sevilla.