Three Real Madrid players Carlo Ancelotti does not seem to trust

Luka Jovic

Real Madrid were scheduled to play against Elche on the 31st of October and Jovic made the headlines before the game, with Karim Benzema’s exclusion from the game presenting an opportunity for the Serbian striker. Jovic hadn’t started a single game this season, and there were a lot of expectations on him.

But Carlo Ancelotti surprised everyone by starting Mariano Diaz, with Luka Jovic on the bench. There was a lot of criticism of the Italian manager, and many thought that this meant the end of Jovic’s career at Madrid. Though Jovic didn’t play due to his own fitness issues, as confirmed by the manager, the cameramen couldn’t take the focus away from Jovic.

There was a lot of talk that Ancelotti had lost faith in Jovic, but Ancelotti’s encouraging words on Jovic somewhat silenced the rumours. Jovic did get minutes in the next game against Shakhtar, but still, he couldn’t get to start a game this season. After 16 games this season, it is baffling that the 60 million euro striker of the team didn’t accumulate at least 100 minutes.

There’s no way Luka Jovic can start ahead of the best striker in the world, and though Jovic likes to play alongside another striker, Carlo Ancelotti’s rigid 4-3-3 cannot accommodate another striker. But Jovic could’ve got better minutes as a substitute, and the fact that Ancelotti wasn’t confident enough to regularly bring on Jovic implies that he doesn’t have a lot of faith in the former Frankfurt player.

Maybe Ancelotti wasn’t convinced by Jovic’s performance in training, and it is understandable to an extent. Jovic is a timid character who doesn’t talk a lot and doesn’t show that intensity on his face. Apart from the skills and technique, the manager also expects a player to show some confidence both on and off the field. That personality is visible in Jovic’s passive game on the field as well, with the Serbian regularly registering the least touches in a game.

But there are certain moments in Jovic’s case which are actually encouraging. Ancelotti used Jovic as a sub only when the game was done and dusted, or when the team desperately needed a goal. Jovic would play alongside Benzema in an emergency formation, and his presence itself creates better space for his teammates, as he pulls defenders towards him with his clever off the ball movement.

Though it is understandable that Jovic doesn’t get a lot of minutes under Ancelotti, I think it is time Ancelotti starts using Jovic more often. Even if he doesn’t trust Jovic a lot, there is a need to manage Karim Benzema’s workload, and using Luka is the solution, which can also boost the talented player’s confidence.