Real Madrid center back Eder Militao has quickly become a favorite among Madridistas for the way he has stepped up in the past couple of months. The club’s Player of the Month for April 2021, Militao has stepped up to play a vital role for Los Blancos in the 2020-2021 LaLiga title race.
Here are three reasons why Madridistas should be sold on Militao’s future as a star center back for the club.
Look at what Eder Militao did against big clubs
It is important for a Real Madrid player to be good against all kinds of opponents. Fans of the club in 2021 will definitely stand by this statement, having seen the team struggle against the likes of Cadiz, Getafe, Osasuna, and Shakhtar Donetsk this season.
But players in Madrid are judged mostly on how they compete against the biggest clubs in the world. That’s especially true for defensive players.
Militao’s first big opportunity occurred in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against Liverpool, as Raphael Varane tested positive for COVID-19 with Sergio Ramos already out injured. The Brazilian center back stepped right in and shined.
And then he had two more big games afterward. Militao was even better, playing at a high level in a win over Barcelona in El Clasico as the Merengue club pocketed Lionel Messi once more. He was magnificent in the second leg of the quarterfinals at Anfield, as Real kept a clean sheet and eliminated Jurgen Klopp’s men.
In those three matches, Militao showed that he has the mentality and the quality to be a Real Madrid center back. Because he kept fighting and showed no signs of weakness mentally or physically against two big clubs in Liverpool and Barcelona.
Eder Militao is capable of helping Real Madrid offensively
In order to be a memorable center back at Real Madrid, it isn’t enough to just sit there defensively and make tackles. You have to be able to help out in the attack in a variety of ways. A center back in Madrid needs to be competent and confident on the ball. That means they need to both avoid major errors and also be capable of moving the ball forward in a way that supports the attack, either when they are playing out of the press or looking to make something happen quickly.
And it always helps to have a center back who can potentially chip in goals or at least be a threat on the attack. You don’t have to be as prolific as Sergio Ramos, as Raphael Varane and Nacho Fernandez have come up with important goals, such as this past weekend at San Mames when Nacho scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win.
Well, Militao has shown that he has these traits. He was Real’s best attacking threat in a 2-0 win over Osasuna a couple of weeks ago. He scored the opener late in the match after coming agonizingly close on multiple occasions. And his header in the box helped set up Karim Benzema’s wonderful goal in the 1-1 draw with Chelsea.
On the ball, Militao is not perfect, but he is a damn good passer. He has completed 90.5 percent of his passes in LaLiga and 88.1 percent of his passes in the Champions League this season, according to WhoScored.com. He averages 4.6 long balls per game in the league.
Militao isn’t afraid to attempt difficult passes when under pressure, and he loves going for a decisive long ball. That endears him to Madridistas, who appreciate the importance of the club having forward-thinking center backs.
His defensive quality is elite
Of course, all the extra traits and buzzwords are nice, but, at the end of the day, Real Madrid wants to have the best of the best in defense. For years, Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane have set the benchmark together as a center back duo. It looks like this partnership will be broken up this summer, but Eder Militao has shown that he has the quality to be one of the rare players who can fill one of their shoes in 2021-2022.
When you watch Militao play, it’s striking how the 23-year-old is so wise for his age. He reads the game brilliantly and can make difficult interceptions or anticipate the runs that a Madrid defender must read correctly. His closing speed is ridiculous. Varane and Ramos have impressed football fans for years with their ability to chase down forwards, and Militao is just as good. Scarily enough, he might even be better, looking at some of the chase-downs he’s made recently.
Militao defends with quality and heart. He can make those technically difficult tackles, tangling his legs between the ball to cut out a dangerous pass. And he will put his body on the line in the box, doing whatever he can to have the presence of mind to make sure the ball deflects off his body in a way that prevents a second-chance effort or corner. Sometimes, you’ll even notice him positioning his body so that the block goes to a teammate to start a possible counterattack.
The Brazilian center back thinks steps ahead like that. He has really shown a new side to his game these last couple of months. With 3.3 tackles per game and 1.7 interceptions per game in the Champions League this season, Militao has also shown that he can raise his game to unreal heights when the occasion calls for it.