As Jose Mourinh experiments with his Real Madrid lineups this preseason, Madridistas are getting excited about how the midfield will look this season, even though Rodri has decided to snub the Royal Whites for Barcelona in disrespectful fashion.
Real Madrid do already have a handful of great players in the midfield and added a veteran player Jose Mourinho really believes in, Bernardo Silva. And judging by the recent rhetoric from the club and the friendly against Ferencvaros, Silva is going to get plenty of starts, even after a poor 2025/26 Premier League and Champions League season in which he looked quite finished for Manchester City - not to mention a ghastly World Cup for Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal.
Silva, Aurelien Tchouameni, Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler, Fede Valverde, and young Thiago Pitarch comprise a strong six of midfielders, and then Brahim Diaz is another option who can play at the 10. So that gives Real Madrid six or seven possible starters for what will most likely be three, maybe four on the rare occasion Mourinho uses a 4-4-2, spots.
Jude Bellingham is the one and only for Real Madrid
Guler is going to get minutes in a few roles, as will Silva. Tchouameni can be an anchor in a double or single pivot, mostly playing the latter at Real Madrid. Fede can play as a No. 8 in a double pivot, but we all know he is best as a right sided wide midfielder where he can focus on carrying the ball.
Jose Mourinho has so many options he can mix and match, and for the most part, there are no clear cut options that are better than another depending on the formation or look, giving Mourinho a lot of flexibility but also a lot of players he can start or bench.
That is, of course, except for Jude Bellingham. The England international and 2026 World Cup hero is THE undisputed starter for Real Madrid, and he is the only bar none, world class player in midfield. Fede Valverde and Arda Guler are close to that world class level, but Fede lost it after stagnating these last two seasons while Guler needs to be able to do more than "just" create chances to be one of the world's best.
Jude, meanwhile, is elite as a 6, 8, or 10. He can play on either side, front or back, anywhere, and he is the one guy who has to start every game for Real Madrid no matter the formation, no matter the look, and no matter the opponent.
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