Real Madrid Castilla: Which players will get first-team chances in 2021-22?
By Eesh Jhamb
Antonio Blanco:
Antonio Blanco is one talented man. We saw how he played for the first team during the last few games of last season, pairing up well with Casemiro in a double pivot, and we could have seen the same this season too.
Real Madrid doesn’t have enough depth in the midfield and just like last season, they would have to depend on Casemiro to fill in the gaps in the midfield – especially with UEFA Champions League starting soon.
It isn’t easy for a player to play a match after every couple of days- that too when everyone expects that player to play at the top level. Someone has to share the burden and Antonio Blanco is the right man for the job.
Plus, what gives him the edge is that apart from his defensive capabilities, he is a deep-lying playmaker too.
He is not the kind of player who keeps the possession and advances slowly. Rather, he prefers to progress with the ball as quickly as he can. His excellent vision and off-the-ball positioning are what make him different from the others.
He could have hoped to feature more with the first team than he did in the last season. But, who knew our president will be waiting with a surprise for everybody. Eduardo Camavinga is now a Madridista!
What does it change for Antonio Blanco? Almost everything, at least that is what most of us thought. Camavinga can show his excellent capabilities to convince Ancelotti that he is a player to be trusted. But Blanco is almost as young as Camavinga. Who will get more chances depends on how they perform in training and what strategy Ancelotti wants to use in the game. Moreover, Ancelotti felt that Blanco was a little worried because of Camavinga’s arrival and has reportedly given Blanco confidence that he will still be a part of the first team this season.