Real Madrid News
Real Madrid dressing room not happy with how Ancelotti is treating veteran defender
Nacho Fernandez’s situation at Real Madrid is quite alarming, to say the very least. And as it turns out, Spanish journalist Sergio Santos has reported that this particular case has made the rest of the dressing room uncomfortable over how he is being treated at the club.
Nacho, despite putting on a strong display last season, has lost his place in Carlo Ancelotti’s blueprint, as a certain Antonio Rudiger now finds himself ahead of the Spaniard in the pecking order.
As a result, the veteran defender has only managed to clock 642 minutes this season while Rudiger has played 1,435 minutes. However, the German international has not really justified his place since arriving on a free transfer last summer from Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Nacho has always lived up to the expectations whenever called into action. Against Valencia in Spanish Super Cup, the 33-year-old was slotted in the left side of defence mainly due to the fact that Ferland Mendy was unavailable for selection.
Against Barcelona, however, Rudiger marked his presence ahead of his competition and the German went on to make several errors. And the discomfort among the teammates is because of this particular reason.
They do not understand why a player, who has given so much to the club, is being demoted to the bench and someone who has been rather substandard is still getting his chances.
Deep down, it’s not only Rudiger who is enjoying the privileges really. If someone is to put their right mind into it, there is no real competition among the first-team players. They understand their positions are simply immovable and are hence not afraid to lose their spots.
As for Nacho, he really wants to be valued and the defender has all the right to be angry. After all, he has been at the club since the age of 11. But now that his future is uncertain, several European teams are vying to get his signature.
Among those are Serie A side Milan and Premier League’s Wolves. His personal preference, however, is to move to the United States so that he never has to face Real Madrid again. In any way, he is still 100% committed to the club and will be available whenever called upon.
While he has always wanted to retire at Real Madrid, given his current situation and the fact that his contract expires in the summer, an exit remains on the table, with MLS emerging as the most likely option.
Real Madrid News
Real Madrid explored moves for Man City and Inter Milan stars before Ibrahima Konate transfer
Real Madrid’s summer activity saw the club bring in Ibrahima Konate on a free transfer. The former Liverpool star was one of many players to join the club in the summer.
While Konate has proven to be a shrewd piece of business, the club have once again lacked depth in central defence.
They have not been helped by the fact that Eder Militao is still out with an injury while David Alaba left in the club in the summer.
Real Madrid chose Ibrahima over Bastoni and Dias
According to Fabrizio Romano (h/t Madrid Zone), Real Madrid were fairly ambitious in the summer, as far as their defensive reinforcements plans were concerned.
The club had targeted a move for Alessandro Bastoni, which is not a secret at this point as arch rivals Barcelona were also interested. But inter Milan had no desire to sell, and the player ended up remaining at the club.
But one more player Real Madrid were targeting in the summer was Manchester City star Ruben Dias, who is considered one of the best in the Premier League.
Ultimately, though, Real Madrid abandoned the pursuit of both Dias and Bastoni in order to chose Konate. It did take a while for Los Blancos to convince the former Liverpool star to jump ship and join Santiago Bernabeu on a free transfer.
What’s next for Real Madrid?
Seeing the lack of depth in central defence this season, Real Madrid are once again expected to enter the market for a new centre-back.
Romano had earlier claimed that the club are keen on signing a centre-back, as well as a midfielder for the summer of 2027, with Jarrel Quansah as a potential target.
But given the way Real Madrid have struggled with a lack of options at the heart of the backline, it won’t be surprising to see the club make a move for a new centre-back in the upcoming January transfer window.
It will be equally interesting to see what transpires with the future of Raul Asencio, who is no longer a valued member of the first-team and the club remain determined to offload him in the near future.
