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Three talking points ahead of Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano | La Liga MD 5
Real Madrid’s La Liga journey continues on Saturday night as they play host to Rayo Vallecano on Matchday 5 of the competition.
Coming off a win over Inter Milan at the same venue, Real Madrid have bounced back strongly from their defeat against Real Betis last weekend.
The fact of the matter, however, is that the team looked unconvincing against the Serie A champions despite winning and were lucky to be gifted both their goals on the night.
There is a lot to improve on from a Real Madrid perspective, and while it will indeed take time to adapt to a new manager’s ideologies, they simply cannot afford to lose any more points.
Madrid Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano.
Pressure on Vinicius
An unsaid reality of the situation at Real Madrid is that the pressure on Vinicius Jr. is growing exponentially, and the winger will not have it easy with any more poor performances.
The Brazilian star has been far from his best for a long time now, but he has failed to step up convincingly in any of the team’s five games so far.
At a time when Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe are performing week in and week out, Vinicius has failed to deliver at the level expected.
Over the past year, relations between the winger and the Real Madrid fanbase have turned sour and the strain appears to be at an all-time high as matters currently stand.
Such is the condition of the Real Madrid winger that virtually every press conference Jose Mourinho steps into revolves around him. Further, Vinicius is now being openly booed by a section of the fans even in his own stadium
It is high time Vinicius came good for Real Madrid, not only for the club’s betterment but also for his personal confidence.
If the situation persists any longer, the superstar could well collapse for good under the pressure, especially given that he has always been a deeply emotional player who reads a lot into public opinion.
The big game double-pivot
Aurelien Tchouameni’s fitness prevented him from featuring Real Madrid in the early parts of the season, and he had his first minutes in the win over Inter Milan coming off the bench in the latter stages.
In the meantime, Jose Mourinho has tried multiple double-pivot pairings including Federico Valverde-Bernardo Silva, Valverde-Eduardo Camavinga and others.
However, the manager heavily trusts in Tchouameni and the player’s return will have a massive impact on the coach’s lineups. In fact, the Tchouameni-Valverde pairing is said to be Mourinho’s preferred pivot for big games.
Both players have not started a game together yet this season, and the clash against Rayo Vallecano tomorrow could hand the manager the best chance to see the duo in action together on the field.
In theory, the Valverde-Tchouameni pairing is defensively very solid, but the coach will hope to get a clearer picture of how the team’s buildup, progression, and creativity are affected with two defensively-oriented players.
After all, any experimentation must be completed in the early stages of the season as the scope to make errors dramatically decreases with every passing game.
Moreover, the duo were involved in a dressing room scuffle last season, and it remains to be seen if that plays a role in their pairing.
Chasing a deficit
Just four games into La Liga, Real Madrid are already behind in the title race. While these are indeed just early days, falling behind can never be good.
Los Blancos dropped points in their last game against Real Betis and currently sit on nine points after four games in the competition.
Two teams sit ahead of them in the standings – Deportivo Alaves on ten points and Barcelona on twelve. Just a month into the new campaign, that is a significant difference.
Hansi Flick’s Barcelona have been flying so far in the competition and do not even appear close to dropping points or being challenged anytime soon.
In that sense, Real Madrid simply have no room for error for they are fighting against a near-perfect rival. Any more slip-ups may take their deficit beyond reach and hand Barcelona a comfortable cushion at the club.
Winning against Rayo Vallecano, and virtually every league game that comes their way, is thus simply vital for the hosts. The margin for error has never been thinner.
Real Madrid’s international break was an eventful one, but not for the reasons one would expect. After all, the media has ensured that the club’s name stays in the limelight for all the wrong reasons, and it is clear that the pressure is now mounting on them.
Having gone two seasons without a major trophy, this was supposed to be the season Los Blancos got back on track and made their presence felt globally once more.
So far, however, they have not taken a single step towards that objective yet and have gone game after game just scraping by with three points.
With the first international break now past them, however, they have crossed the first milestone of the season and all eyes will now view them with higher scrutiny. Slow adaptation can no longer be the excuse.
Tomorrow, the club return from the international break and take on Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu, and it will be interesting to see if they can bounce back in La Liga with a win.
Madrid Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Real Madrid vs Villarreal.
Vinicius Jr. under heavy pressure
The season is only getting more complicated for Vinicius Jr. as the weeks pass, and it is now time one begins to wonder at what point the player will begin sinking.
Having already been in a slump in form over the past two seasons, the new campaign has begun disastrously for the Brazilian star as he no longer has the same impact in the final third for club or for country.
Vinicius was stellar at the FIFA World Cup, and many saw it to be the redemption arc for the player. He returned to Real Madrid, however, and resumed struggling once more.
Over the past few weeks, his performances have gone from bad to worse. Just when one thought the international break could be his redemption once more, he has only gone on and dropped an even poorer chain of displays with Brazil.
Against Australia and even India, the player looked absolutely uninspiring, lost for ideas and disconnected from the play. He now returns to Real Madrid even lower on morale, and it remains to be seen what Jose Mourinho makes of the situation.
Ahead of the international break, there was already talk of Yan Diomande potentially taking Vinicius’ starting spot on the left-flank with Arda Guler starting down the right.
If Vinicius cannot step up in the coming games, that theory may well end up becoming a reality.
Eyes on Kylian Mbappe
While Vinicius Jr. made the headlines in the international break for one reason, Kylian Mbappe caught the media’s attention for a different reason, but the Frenchman is also under the same pressure as his teammate.
Having left the French national team camp after suffering an injury, the player went on vacation with his friends and partner.
On vacation, he even put up clips of himself indulging in activities like cycling, which would be acceptable in any scenario except a world where he is suffering from a knee injury.
The development, needless to say, did not go down with Real Madrid fans, French fans, or the media, and a lot has been said about the player in recent days, including a massive smear campaign.
Mourinho knew of Mbappe’s vacation and even sanctioned the same, but fans cite Mbappe’s actions as a lack of professionalism and commitment to the club.
Mbappe has largely performed for Real Madrid this season, but he will be under pressure tomorrow once more as he must prove that he is indeed well and truly past his injury and that his small getaway did not affect his fitness.
After all, the period ahead will be challenging and will need Mbappe to be at his best week in and week out.
An unforgiving period ahead
Real Madrid lost their last game before the international break, which was against Atletico Madrid in the Madrid derby, and are currently six points behind Barcelona, who continue to sit on a perfect record.
What lies ahead of them across all competitions, however, is a serious challenge that could already make or break the club’s season.
Tomorrow’s game against Villarreal, in that sense, is just the start of a grueling month where Los Blancos have multiple high-stakes games against challenging opponents.
They take on AS Roma in the UEFA Champions League midweek in a tricky game, and then have an in-form Sevilla who are just two points behind them in the league standings. Thereafter, Real Madrid take on RB Leipzig and then FC Barcelona in La Liga.
Any slip-ups over the next month could see the team nine, or even potentially twelve, points behind Barcelona, who are showing no signs of slowing down. Getting on track, thus, is imperative.
After a slow start, it is thus high time Mourinho’s side wakes up andsmellsl the coffee, for there is no more time to waste. They have looked unconvincing for far too long, and it is now time to take matters in their own hands.
