Real Madrid will return to action from the March international break this Saturday with a road trip to the isalnd to take on Mallorca, who are a notoriously difficult team for even the Big Three to face when they are defending their home turf.
With Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinals just days away after that, here are three Real Madrid stars who need to make a statement to the world vs. Mallorca this weekend.
RB Trent Alexander-Arnold
Real Madrid right back Trent Alexander-Arnold has shown flashes of the quality that made him an icon at Liverpool, but we have yet to see that same quality consistently at the Santiago Bernabeu while the issues that made him a target for criticism on the defensive end have been popping up. TAA isn't showing a more advanced side to his game at a bigger club, and opponents like Mallorca are a big chance for Trent to make the strides he needs to in order to convince Thomas Tuchel of his place in the England squad at the World Cup - and convince Real Madrid that he is still "that guy" for the big games in the Champions League.
FW Kylian Mbappe
The Ballon d'Or is very much up in the air and on the line when Real Madrid battle Bayern Munich, as Harry Kane has pulled ahead of the French superstar in the race for world football's most prestigious individual honor. Real Madrid still haven't seen the otherworldly Mbappe that we all thought would be truly unleashed in the Spanish capital. Again, we've just seen glimpses.
Mbappe can be the hero in a tough road environment against a stingy Mallorca side that loves to dig in deep defensively against the big boys of Spanish football. What Mbappe needs to do is start showing the off ball decision making and maturity that his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, did in order to take that next step to being a Madrid legend.
CB Dean Huijsen
Eder Militao is ready to return from injury, but Dean Huijsen should still draw the start in the heart of the Real Madrid defense vs. Mallorca. Whether or not he continues to start against Bayern Munich and onward in the Champions League is entirely up to him. Again, the glimpses are there, but Huijsen has yet to really boss this defense in the big games. He needs to be world class against Mallorca, or he might lose his spot to the old duo of Militao and Antonio Rudiger.