Against Real Sociedad, Real Madrid displayed some of their greatest play of the year. The absence of an aim was the only thing.
Even though the match finished in a scoreless draw, head coach Carlo Ancelotti is left with an unexpected impression, and selecting the starting lineup is more difficult than ever.
This is due to the fact that Real Madrid’s finest performance came on a night when players were featured who, until recently, weren’t even on the bench, such as Dani Ceballos, who is already doubting the Toni Kroos-Luka Modric combination. However, Italian is not the only conundrum that has to be resolved.
The move is needed by Ceballos, and Tchouameni is still lacking.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding his contract extension, Ceballos had another outstanding performance. That is a problem for the team, but the coach must deal with the situation on the field, where the former Real Betis player is trying to disrupt the Toni Kroos and Luka Modric pairing, which has been unbreakable for so long.
Yesterday was not the first time since his return from the World Cup that the Croatian was benched. When Modric is at his best, there is no question that he is unbeatable, but the good news is that Ancelotti now has a successor who can be counted on.
Playing all three of them appears unfeasible, and this is made more difficult by Aurelien Tchouameni’s reappearance. Fede Valverde was moved to the midfield by Ancelotti on Sunday to provide that section of the field greater strength alongside Ceballos and Kroos.
It will be more challenging for the Italian since Eduardo Camavinga has performed well without his colleague, and it is anticipated that the Frenchman will soon return and retake his important role.
Ancelotti also has a problem at left-back since Ferland Mendy is sidelined and Camavinga is forced to come in at a position he would prefer not play.
At right-back, problems are still there. Nacho Fernandez is now playing right-back due to the injuries to Dani Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez, and it seems that this will remain the case. The other right-back on the team is Alvaro Odriozola, although before him, Eder Militao and even Antonio Rudiger have experience in that position.