Another season of LaLiga is coming our way very soon, and we have yet to see the signing of Kylian Mbappe. Ever since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid haven’t really been a threat from the wings.
Gareth Bale hasn’t been the same player we fell in love with, Vinicius and Rodrygo are still too young to be handed over the responsibility of attack from the wings (even though they have been doing it for the majority of the last two years). Both Vinicius and Asensio have been trying their best to deliver but failing almost every time.
Eden Hazard always impresses us whenever he comes on the pitch, but it’s sad that he faces another injury setback after just 2 or 3 matches. So, Mbappe is very crucial for Real Madrid.
Also, with the departure of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane, there is too much pressure on the defenders. So, this campaign doesn’t seem to go great for Real Madrid and some of the opponents might take full advantage of this situation and can surely cause some problems to the club in LaLiga.
5. Real Sociedad:
The ‘Underdogs of LaLiga’ deserve to be on this list by the level they play at. With players like Mikel Oyarzabal, David Silva, and Alexander Isak we all know that they are going to cause a lot of difficulty to Real Madrid in the upcoming season with the pace they have got to challenge Real’s backline.
They ended the last season at the 5th position in LaLiga and will be looking to make it to the top 4 next season to book a spot in the UCL. So a highly motivated Real Sociedad can surely be a threat to Los Blancos.
4. Athletic Club:
Athletic Bilbao is a club that can give challenges to any team and we saw that last year when they won the Supercopa de España by beating Barcelona 3-2 in the final. They also reached the final of Copa Del Rey after some hard-fought battles but just lose it to Barcelona.
We can surely expect them to be in a better position in LaLiga than at 10th last season. With the three games against Real Madrid last season (including the loss in Supercopa), we can say that they gave Los Merengues enough competition to be counted in this list.
Apart from this, with players like Yuri Berchiche, Raul Garcia, and Inaki Williams they can even make it in the top five LaLiga teams next season.
3. Sevilla:
The team that squandered Real Madrid’s league chances with the 2-2 draw near the end thanks to the spectacular performance by Ivan Rakitic. Even though there was a lot of VAR drama in the game, Sevilla was continuously creating problems for Real.
The late equalizer by the deflection off Eden Hazard’s boot (no one knows whether it was Hazard’s trickery or a touch by chance) kept Real in the title race, but the draw stole the title off Real’s hands.
Sevilla is a top team with many great players and is certainly a team that can even win the league by giving cut-throat competition to the best teams in the competition. So, playing against Sevilla won’t be easy.
2. Atletico Madrid:
Many would call Atleti as (now) the toughest opponent in LaLiga for Real Madrid with Lionel Messi leaving Barcelona but not for me. The Madrid derby will be a crucial game.
Atletico was very dangerous last year with the likes of players like Luis Suarez, Jan Oblak, and Marcos Llorente and thus winning the league title. They were also named as the favorites to win the title (again) for the upcoming season.
So we know how interestingly tough this battle will be. Atletico’s only problem last year was their midfield because of regular injuries putting all the burden on Llorente who managed to do his job really well. Rodrigo De Paul’s addition to the squad will not only make them threatening but will also increase their chances to win the league.
So the question will be- Is Madrid White or Red?
1. FC Barcelona:
There is no doubt that Barcelona will be Real Madrid’s toughest opponents – always have been, always will be. The battle is always exciting and is rightly called El Clasico. With Barcelona and Madrid as the obvious contenders for the league title, this fixture will prove to be a decisive factor in deciding the winner.
Barcelona has already signed some amazing players like Eric Garcia, Emerson Royal, and Memphis Depay and one of the best strikers in the world – Sergio Aguero. El Clasico isn’t worth watching just because of the world-class players but also because of the age-old rivalry that the two sides share.
There will be some key battles to watch in the two-legged fixture. Even though Lionel Messi (Real’s biggest threat in the Clasico) will no longer play for Barcelona, the battle will still be the most exciting one and difficult for either side.