Real Madrid: 5 burning questions after the 1-0 win over Real Valladolid

Could Zinedine Zidane pick Sergio Arribas over Marco Asensio?

The main story is the fact that we are even asking this question. Sergio Arribas is an unproven 19-year-old right winger from Castilla, whereas Marco Asensio is a former Champions League bench hero for one of the greatest sides of the modern era. Asensio was supposed to step up and become the next jewel for Real Madrid, but perhaps those expectations were too lofty in the first place.

Over the summer, Asensio was brilliant. In the 2020-2021 season, the Andalusian attacker has taken a step back.

His poor performance against Real Valladolid encapsulated a lot of Madridistas’ frustrations with the 25-year-old right winger. Asensio was too slow on counterattacks, wasteful in front of goal, suspect when tracking back, and genuinely did nothing to create for his teammates.

It has been the story of the season for Asensio.

Meanwhile, Arribas was impressive again off the bench. He worked hard defensively, took up good positions to help his teammates when they were under pressure, and made a lot of neat touches to keep the ball moving. Those are all the little things Asensio has failed to do.

Arribas does not offer the upside Asensio does right now, but Zidane may prefer his industry and consistency to Asensio’s unreliability. This could become a big storyline to monitor.