The 2025/26 La Liga season is officially over for Real Madrid, who finished a rather comfortable second place to Barcelona and have now gone trophyless in two straight seasons. But a familiar face is coming back to try and rescue Real from the same fate that befell him when he initially took over at the Santiago Bernabeu more than a decade ago.
Jose Mourinho is expected to receive a lot more leeway on the transfer market, with Florentino Perez and the club set to give him the reign to change the transfer strategy and sign veteran players who can help the club win in La Liga now.
Here are three proven La Liga players who can raise the floor for Real Madrid and help them dethrone Barcelona as league champions.
Mallorca ST Vedat Muriqi
Vedat Muriqi only barely missed out on the Pichichi Trophy to Kylian Mbappe, though had Mallorca been a more prolific team with more penalty opportunities, Muriqi would have easily skated past the Frenchman.
Beyond the 23 goals, which is insane for a player on a team with no other attacking threats like Mallorca, Muriqi was brilliant in his hold up play and as a leader. He is a great reference point who can be the next Joselu for this club.
Deportivo Alaves ST Toni Martinez
Joselu was scoring 14 goals a season for Deportivo Alaves before joining Real Madrid and even shining against the likes of Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals, and Toni Martinez is having similar production for the La Liga underdogs, saving them from relegation with 14 goals and 3 assists.
Many seasoned La Liga fans will not argue that Martinez is a better player than Kylian Mbappe at striker, for example, but maybe a better fit with his abiilty to fight hard for the team and create chances from nothing. Martinez is an underrated gem of a player who can be a real weapon for Jose Mourinho, and he will love having a player who fights like death up top.
Villarreal RW Nicolas Pepe
Arsenal fans would snicker at Nicolas Pepe for Real Madrid after how much of a flop he was in the Premier League, but he has been great everywhere else. Pepe was a superstar for Lille before his move to England, and he has been a major bright spot in helping Villarreal secure Champions League football.
Real Madrid do not have a left footed right winger they can rely on to create chances and score goals. With 14 goal contributions and nearly 3 dribbles completed and fouls drawn this season, Pepe is one of the only prolific left footed right wingers in the league Real Madrid can actually sign. He is a low cost, low risk veteran profile for Los Blancos in a position of need.
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