After a promising start to the season, Real Madrid have not won any of their last three games in all competitions. They lost 1-0 to Liverpool in the Champions League before drawing 0-0 with Rayo Vallecano just before the international break.
Last night, Los Blancos could only draw 2-2 with Elche. Xabi Alonso's side is still top of La Liga, but only by a point. Barcelona, who won 4-0 over the weekend, are just behind Real Madrid in the table.
Real Madrid are in danger of surrendering their lead in La Liga, and could drop out of the top eight Champions League places. Alonso must consider these moves to get his side back to winning ways.
3 moves Real Madrid needs to start thinking about
Sign a new Joselu
Joselu was Real Madrid's saviour during the 2023/24 season. Despite being well into his thirties during his second spell with the club, he scored important goals in La Liga and the Champions League. The former Spain international helped Los Blancos win both trophies, and he has not been replaced.
Real Madrid, of course, has one of the best strikers in the world, Kylian Mbappe. However, there are times when Alonso needs to send on another center-forward. This would have helped dramatically in their recent three fixtures when searching for a much-needed goal.
Endrick has failed to make an impression at Real Madrid and appears set to join Olympique Lyonnais on loan for the second half of the season. Alonso also has Gonzalo García in his ranks, but he is inexperienced too and has yet to score in his eight La Liga games so far this season.
Joselu's success shows that Real Madrid does not just need star names in their roster. An experienced forward could become an unexpected hero. Los Blancos have been linked with West Ham United's Niclas Füllkrug. However, he is injury-prone and has been poor for the Hammers. Karim Benzema, who now plays for Al-Ittihad, has also put his hat in the ring for a return to the Bernabéu.
Start Eduardo Camavinga
Real Madrid have lacked a composed defensive midfielder with Aurélien Tchouameni injured. However, what was surprising against Elche was that Alonso did not start Eduardo Camavinga. He instead played Dani Ceballos and Arda Güler in central midfield with Jude Bellingham in an attacking role.
Ceballos and Güler are not the best in defensive midfield roles. Camavinga did come on for Ceballos in the 57th minute. However, it was not enough to inspire a victory. The match could have been a different story if Camavinga had played from the start.
Los Blancos have been linked with improving their midfield in January. Although their ambitious targets, Moises Caicedo and Adam Wharton, will not likely be available for a transfer. Therefore, Los Blancos need to make do with what they have until Tchouameni returns from injury.
Sort the defense out
Alonso also played a back five against Elche, with Raúl Asencio, Dean Huijsen, and Álvaro Carreras as the three center-backs. This was a bit too precautionary despite Real Madrid missing Antonio Rüdiger and Éder Militão through injury. The decision may have also been to try and get the best out of the wing-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Fran García. However, it backfired with Los Blancos having to settle for a point.
Playing a back four with an extra player in midfield could have asserted Real Madrid's dominance of the game. They are missing key defenders, but should the defenders they have in a back four. Ibrahima Konate of Liverpool and Marc Guéhi of Crystal Palace could be potential recruits in the future to help strengthen Alonso's defence.