Something feels off around Real Madrid, held without a shot on goal in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final defeat to rivals Barcelona. Los Blancos, who lost 1-0, is only one season away from winning La Liga and the Champions League. But in football, it takes one season to change everything, especially when players like Casemiro have left the club.
After coming back against Liverpool in the Champions League, Real Madrid went and drew away to 10-man Atlético Madrid, before falling at home to Barcelona, which makes it seem like the Liverpool match would actually address Real Madrid’s issues. Was masking instead of indicating. That clubs are where they want to be. Within a month of losing to Mallorca, Real Madrid has become a weaker side but what are the things that are troubling the team?
Here are his three biggest issues:
Eduardo Camavinga ain’t cutting it in the middle
When Camavinga was signed by Real Madrid from Rennes, he was one of the most sought-after young talents in the world. A central midfielder who can be molded into a defensive midfielder or a box-to-box one, he is capable of learning from the likes of Casemiro, Luka Modric, and Toni Kroos. Doesn’t get much better than this. But now in a year where Camavinga has been needed for Carlo Ancelotti to step up, he has collapsed at crucial moments in matches.
For Barcelona’s only goal, it was a cheap pass by Camavinga that caused Frank Casey’s shot to go wide of Militão, and Camavinga lost the ball while launching a counter-attack, which is all too common for Real Madrid. The matter is done. He has been good in defense, where his work rate and skills in possession have helped keep Real Madrid balanced, but when Ancelotti needs midfielders, Camavinga is unable to rise to his opportunities to shine in the middle of the park. Experience can help him in this but similarly to Luka Jovic being sent to Fiorentina, time waits for no one in Madrid.
Vinicius Jr. can be one-dimensional at times
Barcelona’s plan worked as they did not have to fear attacking Real Madrid through the center of the pitch. If Karim Benzema dropped deep to collect the ball, no one was running through the center to find his excellent passing. Viniciu Junior is the man on whom to look to see if the teams will progress but with Barcelona sitting deep to put things in front of them, the game did not feature a trademark Vinicius Junior used to instill fear in the opposition. Used to run in space. Instead, he spent most of the game isolated on the wing and was unable to impact the game.
Firing six crosses into the box, only two were accurate and he only took one shot that was off target. On his day, Vini Júnior may be one of the most flamboyant players in the world, but he needs to add consistency to his game to take Real Madrid forward, especially when Benzema finally hangs up his boots. In the win against Liverpool, Vinnie Júnior showed what he can do with two goals and an assist but Madrid needs that player in big games like this if they are going to win a major trophy this season. They got it from them in last year’s Champions League final, but they will need even more to turn things around in the Copa del Rey.
Depth is starting to become a big concern
At times Real Madrid was one of the deepest teams in the world, but that is not the case this season. Despite still splashing the cash, with only 13 players logging over 1000 league minutes it seems unfair to call this version of the squad the Galacticos. Ancelotti doesn’t seem to trust his depth players and it has a lot to do with the fitness of Eden Hazard, who has been given minutes to see if he can perform as a false nine when Benzema is injured But he couldn’t run with them to make up the difference.
Now, Ancelotti has turned to youngsters such as 18-year-old Alvaro Muñoz – who scored the equalizer against Atlético Madrid – because he has the drive to move forward, at least in these matches. But with the squad carrying players like Lucas Vazquez and Hazard, Ancelotti is acting with his hands tied behind his back if he cannot be trusted.
It all boils down to why it would be surprising if Real Madrid wins a major trophy this season. For a club in transition with rumors of Ancelotti’s exit to manage Brazil, they could only have the Club World Cup to show for the season. There is definitely time to turn things around but that time is fast running out as the matches get tougher.