Xabi Alonso is not to blame for for Real Madrid's struggles this season, according to Karim Benzema who pointed the finger at the club's players.
Alonso heads into Sunday's league game at Alaves with pressure growing after Madrid followed their 2-0 home league loss against Celta Vigo with a 2-1 midweek home defeat to Manchester City in the Champions League.
Benzema, who won numerous trophies in his 14 years at Madrid before joining Al Ittihad in July 2023, told L'Equipe: "No, the coach can't do anything. He has big names....
"What they're lacking is simply a connection. Between [Kylian] Mbappé, Vinícius [Júnior], [Jude] Bellingham, and Rodrygo. Each one needs to know what to do on the pitch. Bellingham needs to understand that he's the attacking midfielder, not the goalscorer.
"Mbappé is the goalscorer, not the attacking midfielder. Vinicíus isn't a defensive midfielder; he's a left winger.
"As long as they all know what to do on the pitch, that's it. Because we're talking about players who are among the 10 best in the world, and they're all on the same team."
Benzema, who played with Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos, amongst others at the Bernabeu, says managing egos can be tricky.
"It's difficult because everyone has their own personality and characteristics," Benzema said. "They all want to be the best, so it's a bit complicated... Everyone needs to understand that, in their role, they can contribute, but that it's for the good of the team."
Benzema, 37, believes players nowadays focus on the individual performance and forget about the team.
"There isn't a more experienced player who can tell Bellingham, Mbappé, or Vinicius that they're doing something wrong," he said. "So it's complicated. The coach, in my opinion, says it, but in a different way... Frankly, it's very complicated.
"The players don't talk to each other anymore. And it shows, actually. It's 'I did my job, I scored my goals.' That's football these days. If your teammate is better than you, you have to accept it.
"The problem is not accepting that the player ahead of you scores more goals. That's why you have problems when you have five or six great players together. They all contribute something. And, in the end, the top scorer always gets a little more attention than the others. But he always needs the others! You can't do it all alone."
Benzema says fellow Frenchman Kylian Mbappé needs to assume the role of leader in Madrid's attack.
Mbappé, who did not play against City due to injury and had an off day against Celta Vigo, has scored 25 goals in 21 games for Madrid this season.
"That's the pressure he needs to shoulder and take that small step to become the leader of the attack," he said. "Because he's the one who has to lead Real Madrid to titles. And not alone, but with the others. That's why I talked about the connection."
