Real Madrid: Analyzing all the right-wing options for the 2021/22 season

Real Madrid’s first LaLiga fixture is less than a month away, and the team is preparing well with intense pre-season training combined with regular training matches. Carlo Ancelotti is keenly looking at every player attending the training sessions in the Valdebebas, and he can expect a full-strength Real Madrid squad after a few days, as the players who participated in the international tournaments would be returning from their respective vacations.

With a new manager at the helm, it’s always going to be difficult to predict his formation and tactics. Don Carlo isn’t someone new to the Bernabeu, but the squad is different and even the footballing approach in LaLiga is different from what it used to be eight years ago.

In his first term, Carletto implemented a 4-3-3 with the legendary BBC trident upfront and the relentless motor Angel Di Maria placed in the midfield, in 2013/14. In the season after, his approach changed with injuries, and he used a 4-4-2 with James Rodriguez and Isco in the midfield alongside Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, for many games. It is going to be interesting to see what’s going to be his formation now.

He might be inclined towards a 4-3-3, given the number of wingers in the squad, and he used the same formation against Fuenlabrada in a training match on 11th July. But given the presence of Martin Ødegaard, he might also look forward to using a different formation. But in any formation, he would have to use someone down the right-wing, which has been a spot of concern in the last two seasons.

When Zidane returned to the Bernabeu in 2019, he planned to use Marco Asensio as the RW, alongside Karim Benzema and Eden Hazard. But an unfortunate ACL injury to the Spaniard changed the plans, and Zidane had no fixed RW in the season, with him often changing formations and personnel. The same continued in 2020/21 because of Marco Asensio’s inconsistency and Rodrygo’s hamstring tear.

With the presence of various players this season, it’s going to be interesting to see who’ll be the main right-winger this season. I’ve seen a lot of people say that Mbappe will be the perfect player to fill that position of concern. Though his arrival looks possible, I highly doubt if he’ll play as a right-winger. He has been playing through the left for the most part of the last three seasons, a position that has brought the best out of him. Even if Real sign him, I highly doubt Ancelotti won’t use a top player in his best position. It’s going to be complicated due to Hazard’s presence, but I don’t see Mbappe as a right-winger, for the moment.

But let’s leave the topic of a player aside and focus more on the players who are currently there in the squad. The current options for RW are Rodrygo Goes, Marco Asensio, Gareth Bale and Lucas Vazquez, with youngsters like Sergio Arribas and Marvin Park likely to continue with Castilla, and fill in the spots when required. Let’s have a look at all the options available, and analyse who might be the best option.