Real Madrid News
Real Madrid retain full trust in new signing after poor El Clasico performance
Real Madrid’s inefficiencies all across the board came to the fore, as the team got completely outclassed by bitter rivals Barcelona on Saturday.
The Catalans were the better team throughout the game, with goals from Barcelona’s feared front three ensuring a comfortable 4-0 victory for Hansi Flick’s men.
One of the main highlights from the result was the dismal performance from new Real Madrid signing Kylian Mbappe.
Although the French international was able to score a couple of goals, both were ruled out due to offside.
In fact, Mbappe was unable to break Barcelona’s offside on multiple occasions, often finding himself behind the opposition defence.
Apart from his woes with Barcelona’s offside traps, Mbappe also missed a few goalscoring opportunities, drawing saves from Inaki Pena.
Real Madrid retain faith in Mbappe
Mbappe’s performance against Barcelona has intensified pressure on the Frenchman, who is yet to fully showcase his talents after joining Real Madrid in the summer.
However, according to MARCA, Real Madrid retain faith in Mbappe despite his poor performance in the Clasico.
The reigning European champions are confident that the former PSG star can turn things around and become a game-changer for the team going forward.
Mbappe has scored six times in La Liga this season, but half of them came from penalties. The onus, therefore, will be on the Frenchman to step up his game and score more often from open play in the coming few matches.
Mbappe’s next assignment will be against Valencia, which will be followed by two more crucial games against AC Milan and CA Osasuna. It will be interesting to see whether or not the forward can turn things around in the next few weeks.
Real Madrid prospect Alexis Ciria will have to wait for his Champions League opportunity despite making a strong impression on Jose Mourinho during pre-season.
The Castilla winger has been left out of Real Madrid’s European squad, but the decision is the consequence of UEFA registration rules rather than a sporting judgment.
According to journalist Arancha Rodriguez (h/t Defensa Central), Ciria was not eligible for Madrid’s List B because he has not been with the club long enough to satisfy UEFA’s requirements.
Registering him would therefore have required Mourinho to include him on the more restrictive List A.
UEFA rules work against Ciria
List B provides clubs with additional flexibility to register young academy players, but being young enough is not sufficient on its own.
Players must also meet requirements concerning how long they have been eligible to represent the club.
Ciria does not meet those conditions because of his limited time at Valdebebas. Real Madrid would therefore have needed to sacrifice a List A position to register him.
With those places required for members of Mourinho’s senior squad, Ciria was ultimately left out.
Real Madrid’s List B instead includes youngsters such as Joan Martinez, Mario Rivas, Thiago Pitarch, Jorge Cestero and Daniel Yanez.
Many of these youngsters made a name for themselves under Mourinho during pre-season and could be used to make up the numbers in the Champions League squad.
They could also get some minutes off the bench, especially against relatively easier opposition, as Jose Mourinho looks to manage first-team minutes.
Mourinho still plans first-team opportunity
Importantly for Ciria, missing the Champions League squad does not appear to reflect a change in Mourinho’s opinion of him.
The youngster impressed during pre-season and is expected to continue spending time around the senior team.
Mourinho intends to give Ciria his official first-team debut during the season. That opportunity will now have to arrive in La Liga or the Copa del Rey.
The Portuguese tactician placed a lot of emphasis on trusting Castilla players during pre-season in the absence of first-team stars.
Ciria was one of the many names who made a name for themselves at Real Madrid during pre-season. He deserves a chance in the first team, and it remains to be seen how Jose plans his development.
