Real Madrid remain winless in their last three fixtures after drawing against Villarreal followed by two humbling defeats against Sheriff in the UEFA Champions League and Espanyol in La Liga.
Los Blancos had the opportunity to extend their points gap at the top of the table with a game in hand by were stunned in a 2-1 loss by Vincente Moreno’s team at the RCDE Stadium. Carlo Ancelotti’s fluid attacking style of football worked wonders at the start of the season but the defensive loopholes continue to haunt the team.
In one of my previous articles on The Real Champs, I spoke about how important the month of October is going to be for Carlo Ancelotti and Real Madrid. Unfortunately, the new month has started on a bitter note with a defeat to Espanyol but there are more important games to come.
As you may have read Kevin Parvizi’s takeaways from the Espanyol defeat, Carlo Ancelotti’s gamble in the starting line-up did not pay off. The Italian has been shuffling and rotating the starting eleven far too frequently ( I cannot entirely blame him as well due to the numerous injuries) but this constant rotation of players is puzzling, to be honest.
The players lack cohesion and a basic understanding of their roles in each game, it was clearly evident in the fixture against Espanyol. Meanwhile, some players have not been receiving ample minutes when they should be getting more playing time due to the impact they can have on the team.
In this article, I’ll be talking about three players who deserve more game-time under Ancelotti and how their presence on the pitch could put Real Madrid back on track after three woeful fixtures. Note, the month of October has several important fixtures but these three players still deserve to get more minutes as they could come crunch in this demanding month.
MIGUEL GUTIERREZ- LEFT-BACK
Real Madrid’s defence has not been up to the mark since the start of the season. It was only obvious that there would be issues after both Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane left the club last summer. While the likes of David Alaba and Eder Militao have been solid in defence, the full-back position has been a serious cause for concern.
Ferland Mendy is yet to play a single minute of football since his injury and Dani Carvajal continues to hop in and out with muscular issues. With both the first-choice fullbacks sidelined, Carlo Ancelotti has struggled immensely.
Nacho and Lucas Vazquez have been sub-par so far and it’s time for Carlo Ancelotti to trust Miguel Gutierrez with more minutes on the left flank.
The youngster showed great promised last season and has performed well so far with the few chances that have come his way. Ancelotti for some reason does not seem to fully trust the youngster but it’s high time he does since there’s no fixed date for Mendy’s return.
According to Kevin Parvizi in his last article, Miguel Gutierrez is in the driver’s seat to become a starter at the left-back position and I completely agree with Kevin. He’s the best option at the moment with the limited choices and his creativity up front will be key in breaking down opposition backlines as well.
EDEN HAZARD- FORWARD
While Eden Hazard is yet to register a single goal this season, he has been impressive every team he’s set foot on the pitch. This is also coming from Hazard’s harshest critic as I’ve never really been optimistic about the Belgian forward.
But this season, he seems to be getting back to his best with time. Carlo Ancelotti considers Hazard to be a key player but the Belgian has not exactly received a lot of minutes. Since Vinicius Jr currently looks indispensable on the left-wing, Eden Hazard has been impressive when played out on the right.
But then again Ancelotti’s decision of not playing Hazard often could come down to two reasons. First and foremost, Eden Hazard is not yet at his best physical conditioning and another injury relapse would just be a huge psychological blow for the player who has been far too unlucky with injuries.
The other reason could be from a defensive perspective as Hazard does not really press often or track the opposite full-back as seen in previous games.
Whatever be the reasons, Eden Hazard simply needs to play more because when he’s on the field, Real Madrid look more organised and lethal in the attack than when they do in his absence. He’s been creating chances every game and it’s only a matter of time before he gets that goal to kickstart his season.
LUKA JOVIC
Luka Jovic desperately needs more minutes as the Serbian looks hungrier than ever to make an impact. The 23-year-old has Carlo Ancelotti’s backing and has been assured minutes by the manager himself when Karim Benzema needs to rest.
At the moment, dropping Benzema is impossible. The 33-year-old is ageing like a fine wine with 17 G/A in 10 games ( 10 goals and seven assists). He is absolutely unstoppable at the moment but that does not mean that Luka Jovic can’t get more minutes.
Jovic has looked dangerous in almost every game he’s played so far. Every time’s he’s come on the pitch Real Madrid have made more chances at scoring or have scored a goal. Look at the last game for example against Espanyol where Jovic got his first assist of the season and it was the only goal of the game for the visitors.
With fixtures coming thick and fast after the international break, Carlo Ancelotti will have to consider playing Luka Jovic often to give Karim Benzema rest when required or pair the two strikers together.
Like Eden Hazard, Jovic just needs to find the back of the net once as a confidence booster to play his best football. The season is long and Ancelotti will most certainly look into the option of giving him more minutes.