Real Madrid have a lot of competition in the midfield this season, even though they did not sign Rodri, Enzo Fernandez, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Mateus Fernandes, or any of the No. 6's they had previously been linked to in the summer transfer window. Jose Mourinho really wanted a new anchor to playmake from deep and compete with Aurelien Tchouameni, but he did at least get Bernardo Silva, who can fulfill that role.
Right now, there is a debate about where to play the current midfielders, specifically Arda Guler. There is an understanding, especially after the 2026 World Cup, that Jude Bellingham can make his greatest impact in the attacking midfield as a No. 10, pressing and playing closer to goal where he can make the difference as a scorer - just as he did as a Pichichi candidate when Los Blancos won the double in 2023/24 before Kylian Mbappe's arrival.
But there are also compelling reasons to play Guler in the 10 or anywhere on the pitch, and as Mourinho and the club zero in more and more on Bellingham as a 10 behind the fluid No. 9 Mbappe up top, Guler playing deeper as an 8, transitioning into a 6, is becoming more and more of the thought, including a public one from Jose Mourinho ahead of La Liga Matchday 1 vs. Espanyol.
Arda Guler is Real Madrid's best creator
The most important reason to play Arda Guler is one that stands out, by far, the most to the Real Madrid faithful, and that is the Turkish international's creativity. He broke out further in the 2025/26 La Liga campaign with nine assists, leading the way among all players, not just the Madridistas, in terms of chances created in the Champions League.
Guler is showing up in all the games, big and "small", and he is the team's best creator, which is why there are comparisons to all sorts of great midfielders of Madrid's past coming his way this offseason, mostly Mesut Ozil but also, incredibly enough, his old teammate and mentor Luka Modric.
Obviously, Guler has a way's to go before he can touch those two legends of the sport, but he is already building his own unique legacy at the Santiago Bernabeu in the early stages of his career. And for Real Madrid fans, getting his creativity and his quality of the final pass to the star forwards is a huge reason to start him just about every week.
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