Jose Mourinho and Florentino Perez of Real Madrid
Photo courtesy: Real Madrid official website
The second half of the summer transfer window has been rather silent for Real Madrid who finished most of their business in the first half of the market.
Having already secured most of their top targets, Los Blancos have shifted to a lower gear and are observing for any unexpected movements.
Jose Mourinho has already declared that he is satisfied with the squad at his disposal, but it is clear that he wishes for a new central midfielder and a new defender. The club, on that front, do have options that they are regularly following.
Transfer activity is possible
As reiterated by Jose Felix Diaz once again earlier today, Real Madrid are not actively planning for any new signing as matters stand. After all, there is no space on the roster currently unless a player leaves.
Jose Mourinho, Real Madrid manager
Mourinho is satisfied with his squad. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
On that front, the club are fully prepared to go all-out and secure a new signing in case there is any unexpected departure in the closing days of the window.
Real Madrid already have players on their shortlist and are likely to have even held initial talks with the potential targets. Should any sale be completed, the arrival operations will be activated instantly.
The midfield is the priority
It is no secret that Real Madrid were keen on signing Rodri this summer, especially after the World Cup campaign he enjoyed with Spain. The player, however, opted to sign for Barcelona and Los Blancos have been portraying a strong image ever since.
Arda Guler of Real Madrid
The only creative spark against Espanyol. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Mourinho and Co. have repeatedly reaffirmed that they do not see a new midfield arrival as a must at this point in time and that the current squad options are sufficient for the season ahead.
The first game, however, ripped off the band-aid and exposed the lacunae in Real Madrid’s midfield, especially in terms of game control and creativity.
Barring Arda Guler, who added some creative spark to the team, there was no player who could control the game or break defences with his passes.
In that sense, a new arrival in midfield would really help the club and Martin Zubimendi has emerged as a strong candidate in recent days.
Jude Bellingham, Real Madrid player
Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images
Jude Bellingham was one of Real Madrid’s few standout players in last night’s win over Espanyol and even scored the team’s opening goal on the night.
The Englishman was seemingly everywhere in the final third and made a menace of himself to the hosts’ defence, making it clear that Jose Mourinho has cracked the code to bring the best out of him.
Needless to say, the key was simply following the same dynamic that made Bellingham shine at the FIFA World Cup – handing him attacking freedom with limited defensive and buildup responsibility.
Mourinho cracks the code
As reported by MARCA in a recent report, Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho believes that the Englishman’s best position is behind the forwards as a link-up player with the attackers.
Mourinho wants to maximise Bellingham’s output. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
He sees Bellingham as a player who has all the required qualities to attack the final third and score, and thus wishes to maximise the output.
Mourinho understands that fielding Bellingham as a traditional number 6 or number 8 severely diminishes his output and takes him away from the danger zones on the field. All efforts, thus, will be made to keep him close to the opposition goal.
In the hunt for the right pivot
With Bellingham set to play right behind the forwards as a floating attacking midfielder, the Englishman’s defensive output will take a severe hit. What that implies is that there is a need for a very defensively solid pivot.
Federico Valverde, Real Madrid player
Valverde was decent as the pivot last night. (Photo by Christian Bruna/Getty Images)
The selection, thus forces Mourinho into a dilemma over what the best combination is for the defensive midfield. After all, he has several individuals who can feature in the department but no single standout pairing.
Federico Valverde and Bernardo Silva started as the double pivot in Real Madrid’s league opener, but the manager also has Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga as options to count on.
There will, thus, be active efforts to zero in on the best possible variation in the coming weeks so as to keep the team defensively solid while retaining the attacking explosiveness. What is clear, however, is that Bellingham will have no business in the deep midfield under Jose Mourinho.