Real Madrid: Five burning questions after the opener against Real Sociedad
By Parshva Shah
Can Marcelo regain the starting left-back spot from Ferland Mendy?
I don’t know what to say about Ferland Mendy. He just can’t seem to stop impressing me.
Looking him play makes me forget that Marcelo once ruled the left flank for Los Blancos. Not that Mendy has reached or will reach the same heights offensively that Marcelo did, but his performances are just so reassuring.
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He is not yet a trailblazing left-back like Marcelo who will maraud down the left flank all on his own and ping a world-class delivery in the box or score a right-footed curler – but he seems to have developed his own style at Real Madrid. He tends to drift centrally which is a perfect blend when you have a line-breaking winger like Vinícius Júnior. To see Zidane giving Mendy full freedom to operate on the left flank was a very refreshing sight.
Marcelo has been on an inevitable decline, but I have always felt that he still has a lot to give to this club and the fans. He is just 32 and he clearly has a few years left in the tank before he officially passes on the baton to Ferland Mendy, Miguel Gutiérrez, or Sergio Reguilón.
Marcelo’s status as a starter is in doubt, that much is clear. Mendy has clearly sealed his name on the plate for the left-back role, and it seems a stretch to even imagine a probability where Marcelo regains the spot from Mendy.
If Marcelo can convince Zidane that he can still be an important piece of the XI, Zidane will have to deal with a selection headache, a headache he definitely wouldn’t be calling for.