Xabi Alonso has admitted Real Madrid have a dressing room of big egos, but says the key to their success is that they are well-managed.
AS reports the midfielder telling Canal+ that the Los Blancos squad can separate into cliques, but they are never in opposition to each other.
“In the dressing room there is so much spectacle, there are clans, but usually they have a good relationship with each other,” Alonso said.
“The egos are managed well.”
Alonso added that no-one at the club is off-limits to criticism, not even Cristiano Ronaldo, and says that is a key difference to this team than teams that came earlier.
“If I have to yell at Cristiano, I yell. I wouldn’t have yelled at Zinidine Zidane five years earlier,” he said.
Alonso also praised Eibar for their promotion to the top flight, having spent time on loan at the club earlier in his career, and reflected on Jose Mourinho’s time at Santiago Bernabeu.
“He is very demanding of himself and his players,” Alonso said of the Portuguese.
“I think he did a good job. During the first two years the dressing room wasn’t Mou or anti-Mou but the last stage was different.
“There were problems, individual conflicts, and that effected the football. It had a negative effect on the team.”
Alonso added that he feels lucky to be part of this generation of Spain players, having twice won the European Championship and the World Cup in 2010.
He also revealed he doesn’t know what he’ll do with himself when retirement comes calling.
“Being in this group means a lot. The generation we have had is a blessing, it’s history. There is no cause that has united us like this,” he said.
“It’s hard to imagine being an ex-player. It’s not easy to find a new passion.”
