Real Madrid: 5 burning questions from a 0-0 draw with Getafe

Is Marcelo officially done at left back?

We have to close the burning questions on a somber note with Marcelo, because, once again, he was not even remotely close to “good enough” for Real Madrid this past Sunday. Whenever Marcelo plays in an attacking role, he does well. He was decent against Eibar and excellent in the first match against Getafe as a playmaker.

But he had to play as a left back in a back four this past Sunday, and he was just as dreadful as he was earlier this season against the likes of Shakhtar Donetsk and Valencia.

By the second half, you could often see Marcelo barely jogging back on defense as Getafe countered, until he was no longer visible on the screen. He would lose track of crosses in the air and runners moving into the box alike. Marcelo’s defending is regularly at “disasterclass” levels, and it is remarkable that Eder Militao and Thibaut Courtois were able to keep a clean sheet for Real Madrid with Marcelo essentially undermining the team.

Marcelo had one great cross to Mariano Diaz earlier in the match that nearly led to a goal, but he hardly did enough offensively to redeem his woeful defending. It’s tough that Real could not find a better solution and were forced to start Marcelo, but they know they cannot move into the next season with Marcelo as the top backup at left back. I know he is experienced, but I cannot envision Miguel Gutierrez being worse than this.