Celta Vigo 2 – Real Madrid 2: Three takeaways from the disappointing draw

Zidane needs to fix the defense and midfield

And so the horror show that is Real Madrid’s defense this season continues.

Whilst Achraf Hakimi is probably the only individual who actually defensively did his job tonight, his colleagues let him down. The center backs in this game were dismal. Their positioning for the equalizer was pathetic with neither Nacho nor Varane anywhere near the scorer who had ample space and time to nod the ball in.

Alongside that, Marcelo has continued in his absolutely dire form with this match only broadcasting that further. His positioning was nonexistent and his offensive play was useless. He often gave up the ball and decided not to track back with any sense of real urgency.

The Brazilian should be dropped in order to hopefully reignite the fire we saw in him last season. However, with the PSG UCL tie now looming, many are fearing just how much damage the likes of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe will do to this backline is quite frankly a morbid prospect. Unless a serious turnaround is seen, this team may be staring elimination from the Champions League right in the face.

Midfield is another glaring issue. There appears to be absolutely no order in the middle of the park. Whilst Modric and Isco continue to perform, Toni Kroos had an unusually bad game and Casemiro continued his poor form. The Brazilian midfielder has looked shaky all season – partly due to the fact that he has seemingly become a roaming midfielder and this, in turn, has taken the shape away from the midfield.

Casemiro was at his best as a shield for the backline, Zidane needs to restore order and actually rotate. Why are players like Dani Ceballos and Mateo Kovacic still riding the bench?!