Real Madrid have one of the most competitive squads in all of Europe. As Martin Odegaard quickly found out, you can be a talented player – even a standout for another club in that same league – and still have to fight tooth and nail for a spot. But what makes things even more challenging is that at select positions, you can fight for your place and still never get a chance. Not because you did anything wrong, but because the chance doesn’t exist. The person ahead of you is impossible to unseat.
That’s the situation Andriy Lunin may find himself in. He has not played for Real Madrid in a proper match since the loss to Alcoyano, though he played no negative role in the humiliating defeat. In his last appearance with Los Blancos, Lunin was actually the best player on the pitch in a preseason loss to Rangers.
Thibaut Courtois has been Real Madrid’s starter for the last 42 matches. He is arguably the best goalkeeper on the planet. Among the established elite, he is the best in terms of consistency. Whereas Jan Oblak is off to a woeful start this season and Marc-Andre ter Stegen continues to struggle, Courtois is still going strong.
He is one of the team’s most undroppable players. Courtois has been in Madrid for only a few years, yet he is already on the echelon of Toni Kroos and Karim Benzema in terms of weekly importance to this squad. Vinicius Junior can be added into this mix, too, amidst his breakout season.
Andriy Lunin could become a world-class goalkeeper
While Courtois has been overshadowed by Benzema and Vinicius in the headlines, he has been fantastic this season and is undoubtedly appreciated by Madridistas. But just as Luka Jovic is finding it impossible to get consistent minutes with Benzema playing a vital role in the center of the Real Madrid attack, Lunin is finding it difficult to break into the XI. How can Real bench Courtois? He bails out the team every week, whether they are facing Shakhtar Donetsk or FC Barcelona.
Lunin has the makings of a world-class goalkeeper. There are not many young keepers with his quality and potential. As we saw against Rangers, his reflexes are top-notch. He could make it at Real Madrid, if not for the fact that Courtois is here and here to stay, having recently signed an extension.
We talk a lot about players who are on the periphery, who deserve more chances, and who won’t get a chance. Lunin is just 22 years old and can start in the Copa del Rey. I do not wish to cause too much alarm here. But we have to be realistic. He could be starting for other teams in Europe. Courtois is in the prime of his career and not leaving Madrid for another handful of years. Between now and then, Lunin will be entering his prime and will want to be a key player.
His chance to be that guy may never come at Real Madrid. Hell, his chance to start more than a handful of matches for a club may never come either. Courtois is too important. And by the same token, Lunin is too talented to let this be the situation in his career for long.