Real Madrid News
Odriozola, Rudiger, Camavinga, Tchouameni get new kit numbers at Real Madrid
The end of last season saw the end of an era for Real Madrid. Several stars of the triple UEFA Champions League winning squad bid adieu to the club, bringing about a change of guard in many positions.
With players like Marcelo, Gareth Bale and Isco now no longer at the club, the baton has been passed on to youngsters and new signings. This transfer begins with new faces taking over the kits donned by the former stars.
As revealed on the official website, Marcelo’s number 12 kit will be worn by Alvaro Odriozola for the coming campaign. This will be the first time since 2006/07 since anyone other than the Brazilian wears it.
Meanwhile, Antonio Rudiger will be the new number 22 for the club. The new signing takes over the kit from Isco Alcaron, who joined Sevilla as a free agent.
The third kit number revealed was that of Aurelien Tchouameni. The French midfielder will take over Gareth Bale’s number 18 jersey for his debut season.
Luka Jovic’s departure from the club opened up a vacancy for the number 16 in the dressing room. The kit will now be donned by Eduardo Camavinga, who exploded towards the end of last season.
Apart from the numbers 26 to 30 that are reserved for players promoted from the subsidiary team, only the number 16 remains vacant in Los Blancos’ dressing room. All first-team players have been registered, with the exception of Reinier, whose future is uncertain.
With the squad seemingly full, any new arrivals must now go hand in hand with a first-team departure.
Real Madrid’s adventure so far under new coach Jose Mourinho has been far from perfect and this fact shouldn’t be lost even after the team’s brilliant comeback win over AS Roma in midweek.
However, there are areas where Los Blancos have shown a clear improvement under Mourinho, when compared to previous bosses such as Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa.
One of those areas has been set plays, with Real Madrid appearing far more potent from set pieces this season.
A clear improvement from last season
As reported by Diario AS, the three goals in Rome, all from Arda Guler corners inside a seven-minute blitz, were the perfect advert for the work being done at Valdebebas.
Those strikes took Real Madrid’s set-piece tally to seven goals in just ten matches this season. Four of them have come in La Liga, one from a corner and three from free kicks, with the trio in Rome completing the haul.
It is a striking figure when set against last season’s return. Under Alonso and Arbeloa, Madrid managed 12 set-piece goals across the entire campaign, all in La Liga, split evenly between six from corners and six from free kicks.
On current trends, this side looks well placed to surpass that number comfortably.
The reason behind Real Madrid’s improvement
Attacking set pieces are led at Valdebebas by Pedro Machado, with the whole coaching staff involved and Mourinho himself giving the final green light on every routine.
Defending them, meanwhile, falls to Sami Khedira, though it is treated as a collective effort. Mourinho’s appreciation of that teamwork was clear when Bellingham headed in a Guler free kick against Espanyol, prompting the manager to leap up and embrace his assistants.
Machado, one of Mourinho’s most trusted lieutenants, has followed him from Fenerbahce to Benfica and now Madrid, part of a backroom team blending experience with young, ambitious talent.
On the pitch, Guler is the undisputed master when available, his left foot the key weapon, with Bernardo Silva, Trent Alexander-Arnold and even Diomande also trusted to initiate attacks.
Such meticulous strategy has helped Real Madrid turn into a potent side from set-pieces this season.
