Real Madrid News
Three options Ancelotti could consider to replace injured Real Madrid midfielder – report
Real Madrid will be without the services of Aurelien Tchouameni for about two months which comes as a big problem for Carlo Ancelotti and co.
The 23-year-old has been a regular starter for the team this season, thus replacing him will become an arduous task for the manager.
The Frenchman’s loss will be a big one, but the narrative does not stop and the Real Madrid manager must look for ways the team can go about and still churn positive results.
For that matter, there are, in fact, a few options the manager can consider as reported by Mundo Deportivo and here we explore those.
Eduardo Camavinga
Eduardo Camavinga presents a natural alternative to Tchouameni in the midfield, a position that suits him best and he likes the most. While this does seem logical in some way it raises the challenge of Ancelotti’s decision: whether to position Camavinga in the central midfield or on the left side.
The latter choice is pivotal for Real Madrid, as it’s evident in Camavinga’s influential role, as exemplified in his performance during the Clasico. He may not like playing there much, but the output has been evident for everyone to see.
Toni Kroos
Toni Kroos has been deployed at the base of the midfield on number occasions by Ancelotti in recent years.
Utilizing him in this capacity could significantly enhance Real Madrid’s ball control and provide room for Ancelotti to accommodate Camavinga on the flank.
Luka Modric
On the other hand, Luka Modric typically thrives in an advanced role, closer to the attacking third. Nevertheless, Ancelotti has occasionally positioned him in a more deeper midfield role, but this tactical adjustment hasn’t yielded consistently successful results for the Italian.
Another option the manager could work on is to switch to a conservative 4-2-3-1 approach where Kroos and Federico Valverde could act as double pivots, something that Ancelotti used at times last season.
Real Madrid’s main goal heading into the summer transfer window was to wrap up the signing of Jude Bellingham amid massive interest from Premier League giants such as Liverpool, Manchester City, and Chelsea.
Pep Guardiola’s City, especially, were ready to match and increase any salary Madrid offered, and were going strongly into the bidding war.
Eventually, Bellingham decided to join Madrid after they reached an agreement with Borussia Dortmund for €3 million.
However, following this, los blancos had to improvise a fair bit as Karim Benzema decided to leave the club to join Al-Ittihad on a free transfer. They were expecting him to continue for another season, at least, and it stumped their plans in the market.
In the next few weeks, Madrid chased forwards, and ended up signing Joselu, Brahim Diaz, and a certain Arda Guler, who was close to Barcelona before eventually ending up at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Unfortunately for Madrid, he is yet to play a single minute for the club after picking up a serious injury in pre-season. Despite being on the bench for a couple of games, Guler suffered a relapse in training, and was sidelined again.
Now, reports from Yagiz Sabuncuoglu say that the Turkish international is close to returning to team training.
Guler has slowly, but surely, been recovering from his injury, and could take to the pitch for his first minutes with the club in the next few weeks as Madrid look for solutions after a month full of injuries.
With Vinicius Jr, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Eder Militao, and Thibaut Courtois all out until early 2024, Madrid have relied on Castilla for reinforcements, but could do with Guler’s services in their forward line.
That said, Carlo Ancelotti and co. are expected to be extremely cautious when it comes to the Turkish international. The slightest spell of poor man-management here could make or break the youngster’s career.
M.E Leboko
October 31, 2023 at 10:33 pm
There isn’t any problem in replacing Tchouameni,there are lots of players in that regard considering the depth available for the center of field there at Madrid. Camavinga play far better than Tchouameni.