Advantages of not signing a new CB
Currently, there are four centre-backs in the first team, as I’ve mentioned in the previous slides. The starting Centre-backs in Alaba and Militao look to be set in their roles, and they are forming a solid partnership. It is still early to jump to conclusions, but so far it has been so good in their case. Nacho has been a reliable backup, though he is yet to hit the level he had shown in 2020/21 under Zidane.
The only causes of concern are that Nacho is ageing and has been inconsistent this season, while Jesus Vallejo has been practically non-existent this season, with not a single start under his belt. The 25-year-old centre-back has been very disappointing in his last two loan spells at Wolves and Granada respectively, and it is debatable if he is a player of Real Madrid’s quality or not, though he hasn’t played enough this season to be judged by us. These are issues that need to be addressed, but signing a new centre-back might not be the only solution to this problem.
There are a lot of talented players in Real Madrid Castilla and Juvenil A, who have the potential to be a great centre-back. The main advantage of not signing a new centre-back will be that it will present an opportunity for the manager to make use of the underutilized and talented La Fabrica graduates.
A lot of Castilla centre-backs have come into the limelight in the past couple of seasons. While Victor Chust had started for the first team a couple of times, Pablo Ramon and Mario Gila’s name was often taken while discussing Castilla’s best defenders. This season, it has been the turn of Juvenil A’s Marvel, who has apparently caught Florentino Perez’s eye, and the in-form Rafa Marin, who has been called up to the first team in recent times. Though Don Carlo is not known for using a lot of reserve players, even he would have to change his mind if he takes a look at the abundance of talent in the academy.
Looking at an individual case, not signing Rudiger might actually be a boon. His signing might actually disturb the wage bill structure, with the German defender asking for around 12 million euros a year. And he will be 29 years old by the time he becomes eligible to sign a deal, so he won’t be a long term prospect for the club.
Now let us have a look at the disadvantages of not signing a new centre-back.