Real Madrid did not sign a single player in the summer window for the first time in several years. The club allowed some of its beloved first-team players to leave instead. Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez, and Danny Ceballos were also permitted to leave without any replacements in place.
Hence, it might have backfired as Real Madrid are having a rough form recently. With the talent at the hands of Zidane, Madrid should be more than capable of challenging itself for La Liga. But the dilemma lies here since this is Real Madrid, a club that desires excellence and demands success in all competitions from the fans. But do they really have the necessary squad depth to compete on all fronts, given their outgoings and lack of signings, and not risk burning out?
Eden Hazard was supposed to fill in the role of Cristiano Ronaldo but has not been able to be regular due to his injury issues. Varane hasn’t been performing lately either. With the absence of his partner and club captain Sergio Ramos in the beginning of this season, he seems to be lost. The French center-back has been committing error but continues to play because there is no one on the bench to wrestle from him the spot.
Since last season, Isco and Marcelo aren’t even shadows of themselves, Luka Jovic isn’t performing to his capacity. Players such as Mariano Diaz are not getting chances and even if he does, he isn’t performing as expected. In order to get the most out of them, Real Madrid needs greater rivalry among the players inside the squad. Marcelo could also leave at the end of this season.
At present, the team lacks roster depth, although the squad’s consistency has also declined. Only Benzema seems to have been saving Real Madrid this season as Vinicius Jr., Asensio, and other youngsters are also not performing as they were expected.
Initially, the club’s decision not to spend heavily this summer was understandable. But having offloaded a vast number of players now-some of whom were already on high salary-fans may have predicted at least some reinvestment. It’s all right if Zidane needs to take responsibility for the rough patch like he already does.
How many times this season has he done it already? The Frenchman has himself to blame, having repeatedly maintained that, amid the obvious imbalance and lack of consistency, he is satisfied with his team.
