The 2022-23 season is not over yet, but in terms of La Liga, it seems to have ended before it even began. At the time of writing, there are 11 more matches to go till the whistle is blown for the last time, but chart leader FC Barcelona is floating safely at the top, 12 points ahead of the team positioned at #2 – Real Madrid. And, to be honest, looking at how Los Blancos are doing in the league, very few people are anticipating a drama by the end of May.
True, Barça is having an amazing season on the national front (as opposed to an embarrassing one in the European League), with only 2 losses so far. The real story, however, is how disappointing Real Madrid is performing this year in La Liga (once again, as opposed to quite an impressive run in the Champions League). Out of 27 games played so far, no less than 9 of them have not ended with a victory for the boys in the white uniform – definitely not what you’d expect from one of the leading football clubs in the world.
What’s Wrong with Real?
Experts can’t seem to put a finger on one specific, major problem that Real Madrid has. Proof of that is their outstanding performance in the Champions League so far. But if you ask most Madridistas, they will tell you that something is wrong with the roster from the beginning of the season.
Sure, many players like Veteran goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, captain Karim Benzema, outstanding midfielder Luka Modrić, and child wonder Vini (Vinícius) Jr. are contributing their share to the team effort. But it seems that, in general, the hunger for success is just not there.
“They took the squad from last year, which was good enough but not excellent, and made almost no changes to it,” complained to us Rodrigo, a Real fan who came on Sunday all the way from Malaga to see the game against Valladolid, “and don’t get me started on Carlo (Carlo Ancelotti, the team’s head coach). He seems not to take his job seriously enough. Do you remember what he said after the humiliation at the Clasico in January? ‘Not a critical moment’ he called it. If you ask me, he should have been sacked back then.”
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Hopes for 2024
That said, Real Madrid fans will probably be happy to hear that the management team is not sitting around and waiting for the season to end. They’ve already got some aces up their sleeves that they would like to sign for next season – the sooner, the better.
As of 2020, one of Real Madrid’s biggest sponsors is easyMarkets, a leading brokerage brand that grants financial services to clients who open an account from around the world, and that has brought a fair amount of cashflow to Los Merengues. Some of the names that are being whispered out loud are defender Joško Gvardiol (currently playing for RB Leipzig), wing-back Reece James (currently on Chelsea’s roster) and, of course, the hottest name around right now – PSG’s Mbappé.
“I would not object to Mbappé coming over, naturally,” said Rodrigo with a laugh, “but I hope that they understand that their main problem right now is defense. Courtois is a legend, but he is not getting any younger, and he can’t do it alone. Over 20 goals in under 30 games in the league is not an acceptable standard for the best football club in the world,” he added.
Calling on Carlo
As for the head coach, there’s no lack of uncertainty on that front as well. Ancelotti recently admitted that he has been offered the job of head coach of the Brazilian national team, and president Florentino Perez hinted that he would not stand in the 63-year old coach’s way. It doesn’t seem like Ancelotti will be shown the door out of the Bernabéu, despite this lukewarm season, but should he choose to leave on his own, the club is already looking at some other names. One of the most dominant candidates is Argentinian Mauricio Pochettino, according to reports, but it is too soon to start speculating about that just yet.
