Real Madrid: Five burning questions after the opener against Real Sociedad

Will we see the best of Luka Jovic and Eden Hazard?

The 2019-20 season saw an over-reliance on Karim Benzema to deliver the goods. Asensio was out nearly the entire season since he ruptured his knee during the preseason. That meant that Eden Hazard and Luka Jović were expected to step their scoring games up when Benzema was having a bad day in front of goal.

Hazard and Jović were playing their first season in Real Madrid colors, and even though they had proven themselves at Chelsea and Eintracht Frankfurt respectively, the pressure of representing Real Madrid is unparalleled. It’s an entirely different ball game when you are playing for the best club in the world.

If you asked me, both the players were highly unfortunate with how their seasons panned out. Neither of them would have imagined to struggle the way they did.

Hazard’s debut season was plagued by three injuries that kept him on the sidelines for most of the campaign. He was starting to morph into the player he was at Chelsea in November, but his luck was rotten – Thomas Meunier’s challenge on his ankle meant that he never returned to his best whenever he did feature. He was unavailable for the Real Sociedad match too.

As for Jović, he was available for selection for most of the season, but his appearances were limited to the bench. Zidane could afford to give him just 806 minutes – less than the playing time of nine full matches – and he scored just two goals and contributed two assists; a direct involvement in a goal every 201.5 minutes.

On first impression, this figure looks horrible. But let me tell you that Jović hit the woodwork at least 3-4 times and another 2-3 goals were ruled out for offside. If those goals had counted, then he would have had a direct hand in a goal every 80-90 minutes, an outrageous figure considering how less he started the games.

Jović clearly has the talent and Zidane must find a way to integrate him more in the squad. The Serbian is at a crucial stage of his career and he must play more to keep developing in order to fulfill his potential. Him replacing Benzema is totally out of the question just because Benzema has been hands down the best Real Madrid player since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure.

This is a make-or-break season for the aforementioned duo.

While one’s fitness has betrayed him, the other has been a victim of sharing the position with one of the best strikers in the world. Here’s to hoping that they can show their best form and play a big hand in helping Real Madrid win silverware.