The summer has arrived and already we have witnessed a lot of drama at the club ranging from the departure of Zinedine Zidane and his open letter to the fans to the return of Carlo Ancelotti. Real Madrid fans everywhere have been hoping that this is the summer where we see a complete revamp of the squad with the next few months full of departures and arrivals at Real Madrid.
However, we all need to take a step back and be realistic. That isn’t going to happen. Say what you want about the current squad but this is what we have now and even though there will be some adjustments, don’t expect there to be too many changes for the simple reason that Los Blancos cannot afford it. The pandemic has hit them hard financially and the money just isn’t available for the team to go out and spend excessive amounts in order to bring in anyone. Raise money through sales? Sure, that’s the plan but not many clubs can afford big payments either and everyone is aware that Real Madrid plan to sell so they will keep their bids as low as possible.
Almost all positions at the club will need to be altered in one way or another so let’s take a look at each position and each player to see what Los Merengues actually need this summer and we can move away from the things we simply want.
Goalkeepers
Thibaut Courtois – Should Stay
Andriy Lunin – Should Stay
Real Madrid have two great goalkeepers in Thibaut Courtois and Andriy Lunin and that’s that. No changes are expected there especially with the incredible season Courtois has had nor should there be any adjustments. The arrival of Carlo Ancelotti will not alter anything to this either. In short, the goalkeeping situation at the club is safe and will be for quite a few years.
Defenders
Dani Carvajal – Should Stay
Alvaro Odriozola – Should Stay
Sergio Ramos – Expected to Leave
Eder Militao – Should Stay
Raphael Varane – Expected to Leave
Nacho Fernandez – Should Stay
David Alaba – New Arrival
Ferland Mendy – Should Stay
Marcelo – Should Leave
Jesus Vallejo – Should Leave
On paper, Real Madrid are covered defensively but it is a lot more complex than that. Personally, I think that cashing in on Dani Carvajal at this time would be a good piece of business given his problems with injuries but when he’s fit, he’s easily one of the best in the world. That’s the difference between the wants and needs of Madridistas though – we don’t need to sell him because letting him go would mean we need someone else in his place and even if Alvaro Odriozola was good enough to take that spot, a replacement will be needed. We can’t depend on Lucas Vazquez consistently slotting in as a makeshift right-back.
If rumors are to be believed, Sergio Ramos will leave at the end of his contract (which will save Real Madrid in terms of wages) while the club is looking to possibly let Raphael Varane go since he has no plans to renew and his contract ends next season. Add to that the fact that Marcelo could also be leaving, Real Madrid now lose three players in defense. Because of that, the arrival of David Alaba is massive – a free transfer with incredible experience and can play seamlessly in the center of defense or as a left-back. Real Madrid cover two positions with one free signing (albeit on extremely high wages). If needed, the Austrian can also be backup to Carlos Casemiro as a defensive midfielder, though we shouldn’t expect to see that happening too often.
If things go as the rumors are expecting them to, Real Madrid’s starting back four in the upcoming season could be Dani Carvajal, Eder Militao, David Alaba, and Ferland Mendy. However, Marcelo’s departure could be classified as a need and in that case, the club could look to bring in someone who would be a backup to Mendy. The return of Sergio Reguilon is not completely off the table but would he be willing to return to the club as a backup? Possibly not. Jesus Vallejo is currently on loan to Granada and he’ll be returning to the club this summer but they’ll want to cash in on him and if they are unable to, then expect him to leave on yet another loan deal.
Midfielders
Carlos Casemiro – Should Stay
Toni Kroos – Should Stay
Luka Modric – Should Stay
Federico Valverde – Should Stay
Isco – Should Leave
Martin Odegaard – Should Stay
Dani Ceballos – Should Leave
The midfield is a position that definitely needs to be spoken about. Los Blancos currently have three starters with the only backups being Federico Valverde and Isco. Luka Modric isn’t getting any younger and even though he has been exceptional, he won’t be able to play every match this season. Real Madrid will need to look into selling Isco if they can get a good amount for him and replacing him with another midfielder who will be willing to be a backup but is still good enough to play quite consistently whenever Kroos or Modric are rested or (God forbid) injured.
Isco has had many years at the club and it’s safe to say that even though he is good enough, he’s not consistent enough. It’s difficult to depend on a player when you aren’t sure what version of the player will show up on the day. It’s a liability to the club but it remains to be seen how much they can get for him if they choose to sell him – I assume it won’t be a very high figure nor should it be. The question then becomes, who replaces him? Asensio could be chosen as a replacement but it’s not his natural position which in itself would be a very risky move.
During the past few seasons, Real Madrid have focused a lot on their attacking threat and defensive solidity that the midfield seems to have been forgotten. We are on the verge of regretting this and something will need to be done soon – this could be why Zinedine Zidane reportedly asked for Paul Pogba from Manchester United often as well.
Having said that, the return of Martin Odegaard on loan is expected. He hasn’t had the best of seasons last year and decided to leave to Arsenal in January where he did quite well but will need improvement. He’s ready to continue growing at the club though. Dani Ceballos is another Arsenal loanee who is expected to return but all signs have pointed towards him being sold if possible during the summer.
Forwards
Lucas Vazquez – Should Stay
Eden Hazard – Should Stay
Marco Asensio – Should Leave
Rodrygo Goes – Should Stay
Vinicius Junior – Should Stay
Mariano Diaz – Should Leave
Karim Benzema – Should Stay
Takefusa Kubo – Should Leave on Loan
Brahim Diaz – Should Stay
Gareth Bale – Should Leave
When we are generally speaking about our forwards, it has been extremely underwhelming. It’s worth noting here that Karim Benzema was by far our highest goal scorer last season. Who came second? Carlos Casemiro. That simply should not be the case. In addition to lack of goals, the forwards at the club have not reached the heights that were expected of them overall.
Lucas Vazquez has been sensational this season but he found himself being forced to play at right-back for the majority of the matches due to injuries suffered by Carvajal and Odriozola. Marco Asensio had a couple of good games but overall, he’s not good enough anymore. It wouldn’t be too surprising if we saw him depart the club this summer with Real Madrid looking to make as much money as possible off of sales and wage cuts. The two Brazilians in Rodrygo and Vinicius have had some extremely bright moments but they’re still young and have a lot to improve on which is difficult with the pressure surrounding them at such a big club. Mariano Diaz has somehow found a way to still be a part of the club but yet again, Real Madrid will be trying to sell him this summer.
On a brighter note, the return of Luka Jovic should be looked upon fondly and I assume Carlo Ancelotti will want to keep him and give him some more opportunities in the upcoming campaign. Brahim Diaz has been sensational on loan with AC Milan and we could see him feature for the club this time around especially if the club are able to get Gareth Bale off the books which will be a mission on its own.
This leads us to the inevitable talk of Kylian Mbappe. If you look at the covered positions in the team, Mbappe is not a need simply because we have his position covered on paper. But, it’s Kylian Mbappe. Any club would ‘need’ him. However, can we afford him? All signs point to no. He’s going to be extremely expensive and Real Madrid may feel like they’re forced to wait until his contract hopefully ends next summer but it could also be too late. It’s difficult to see how Mbappe will be a Real Madrid player this summer, the numbers just don’t add up at the moment.
Don’t be too surprised though if Luka Jovic is sold and Real Madrid try to pursue another attacker. There have been rumors that the club will make one big signing during the summer but no details have been given yet. Judging by the club, their big signing will probably be a forward if that happens. So more players may need to leave.
Our 2021/2022 Squad
Goalkeepers
Thibaut Courtois
Andriy Lunin
Defenders
Dani Carvajal
Alvaro Odriozola
Eder Militao
Raphael Varane
Nacho Fernandez
David Alaba
Ferland Mendy
Midfielders
Carlos Casemiro
Luka Modric
Toni Kroos
Federico Valverde
Martin Odegaard
+ One more midfielder needed
Forwards
Lucas Vazquez
Rodrygo Goes
Vinicius Junior
Eden Hazard
Karim Benzema
Luka Jovic
+ One more forward needed (with selling another forward)