Don\u2019t sweat it. Seriously.<\/p>\n
I went through this phase in the late 2000s. I had lost all of the players I grew up watching: Roberto Carlos, Fernando Hierro, Fernando Redondo, Zinedine Zidane, and so many others. Raul was still there, but a shell of himself. The Gravesen \/ Pablo Garcia era was painful to watch. Certain things hooked me in, like the prolific comebacks with Fabio Capello, but largely it was tough getting excited for run-of-the-mill games, especially with the long streak of round-of-16 Champions League exits and the little amount of truly special games we had to look forward to.<\/p>\n
Did I watch everything still? Yes. Did I love the club? Yes. Was I excited to watch every game? Not really, and I would be lying if I said I wasn\u2019t more excited to watch Toronto Raptors games at that time.<\/p>\n
SUBSCRIBE: The Managing Madrid Podcast On YouTube<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n But, the phase passed. We lost Raul, Zidane, Figo, Carlos \u2014 but we eventually got Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Cristiano Ronaldo. Karim Benzema won our hearts. When he left, Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde, and Vinicius Jr gave us unforgettable memories.<\/p>\n I am missing players, but that\u2019s kind of the point: This club has given us a lot, that it\u2019s impossible to talk about everyone and everything \u2014 and you\u2019ll be surprised at how quickly Real Madrid will draw you back in again. There will be players you fall in love with, moments you will never forget, and it will happen quickly \u2014 with players you might not know even exist yet.<\/p>\n 2. If Mbappe defends more, will that decrease or increase his offensive output?<\/strong><\/p>\n The latter. People don\u2019t often realize how connected defense is to offense. When Jurgen Klopp had his front-three \u2014 Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Man\u00e9 \u2014 pressing like the lives of their families were on the line, do you think that increased their offensive output, or decreased it?<\/p>\n Better pressing leads to better chances. Period. This is part of the challenge in convincing the \u201cMbappe shouldn\u2019t have to press\u201d crowd: they don\u2019t get how Mbappe\u2019s own offensive output \u2014 and more importantly, the team\u2019s collective success \u2014 increases if everyone buys in to Xabi Alonso\u2019s scheme.<\/p>\n A high line defends from the front. It has always been this way. Three at the back, with a high line, will get ripped to shreds if the first line of defense is a sieve.<\/p>\n \u201cI told everyone that as long as you are not Messi, you have to defend\u201d – Jurgen Klopp<\/p>\n You have to give Xabi Alonso, as well as Mbappe and Vinicius Jr, all the benefit of the doubt that they can make it work \u2014 and the signs against Real Oviedo and Mallorca were promising.<\/p>\n 3. The moment that changed everything?<\/strong><\/p>\n Accurately rated moments that changed everything: 1) Sergio Ramos\u2019s header against Atletico Madrid in the 2014 Champions League final; and 2) Claude Makelele getting sold in 2003.<\/p>\n Most underrated: Jesus Gil disbanding Atletico Madrid\u2019s youth team in 1992.<\/p>\n In 1992, five years after Gil was elected president of Atletico, their club was bleeding money. Gil decided that a way to cut costs was to disband the youth academy.<\/p>\n Let me repeat what I just said for dramatic effect: Gil decided that a way to cut costs was to disband the youth academy. Jesus Gil, president of Atletico Madrid, decided in order to save money, he\u2019d get rid of all his young talent, and stop producing them to save money. Are you following this? Let me make this clear: Instead of grooming cheap young players and selling them for a profit, he decided it was financially more savvy to get rid of them all, and make no money from what should\u2019ve been a great source of revenue. That\u2019s the equivalent of getting on your knees and looking for pennies in the crevices of your couch while there are $100 bills falling from the sky, just a few feet away.<\/p>\n JOIN: Managing Madrid Members-only content to be part of a lot of bonus episodes<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Raul at the time was in Atletico\u2019s youth academy, and was already a promising player. So he, like every other player in the academy, needed a new home. Easy, why not just head across town? Raul joined Real Madrid\u2019s youth team, and two seasons later, made his debut for the senior side. He then went on to become one of the greatest and most iconic players in Spanish football history.<\/p>\n Can you imagine Real Madrid\u2019s history, post 1994, if Raul was never part of it? I just threw up.<\/p>\n 4. What if Kiyan Sobhani was the coach?<\/strong><\/p>\n If I was hired as Real Madrid manager, the first thing I would do is hire an assistant coach much smarter than me (Xabi Alonso), and make him the head coach \u2014 demoting myself to assistant coach who just fetches water and runs errands.<\/p>\n But I guess that\u2019s not as fun as answering the question more directly.<\/p>\n The nerd in me would revisit all of the issues from last season and look into how they can be fixed, one by one. The biggest one: The team can\u2019t be deploying a high line without an efficient press. You have to have both, or neither \u2014 you either need to stay compact deep, or be aggressive and cohesive with your press.<\/p>\n FOLLOW: Managing Madrid on Instagram<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n I\u2019d also look into using the profiles that could\u2019ve helped Real Madrid last season with ball progression (Arda G\u00fcler), look at promoting players with specific profiles who could help with providing a presence in the box (Gonzalo Garcia), and urge the club to sign wing-backs and defenders (already done).<\/p>\n There should also be a system of meritocracy, so that we avoid a situation where players, indisputably, play because of their seniority rather than what they\u2019re doing on the field. Introduce healthy competition, reward players who impress in their limited minutes. Rotate \u2014 keep the nucleus of the team fresh and healthy for the climax of the season (March \/ April \/ May). Avoid blueprints which demand one or two players (Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde) to cover most of the ground and have their lungs fizzle out. Thibaut Courtois can\u2019t be your best player every game.<\/p>\n 5. What will happen to Real Madrid when Florentino Perez retires?<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s a great question that everyone is asking but few (if any?) have an answer to. We\u2019ll have to find out — and hopefully we won\u2019t find out the rough way.<\/p>\n I think this is Florentino Perez\u2019s last tenure. After 2029, he\u2019ll likely be done. He\u2019ll leave having set an incredibly high bar, with only a handful of people eligible to succeed him. Will we get another (corrupt) Ramon Calderon-type? Will we get a Lorenzo Sanz-type (well respected, but left the club in a poor financial state)?<\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to say, and it\u2019s reasonable to be worried. Perez, along with Santiago Bernabeu Yeste, are the two greatest presidents in club history. There is no one in football who ran their club better than Perez in the last 30 years. The team\u2019s financial situation is incredible — and it\u2019s all down to the revenue they generate and the expenses they monitor rather than reliance on an entire state that patches up heavy losses. You won\u2019t find a healthier financial situation in this sport.<\/p>\n The good thing is, the way the club is set up, the incoming president will care about the club — this is a guarantee given that the nominee has to be a long-standing socio. You won\u2019t find a Peter Lim (an owner who doesn\u2019t care) here, ever. Keep an eye on Rafa Nadal and Manolo Sanchis — both of whom meet the requirements and are well respected.<\/p>\n 6. Can Mastantuono and G\u00fcler co-exist?<\/strong><\/p>\n I think Arda G\u00fcler will play a deeper role than Franco Mastantuono this season but I do think this is a fair question to ask. Mastantuono will be \u2018competing\u2019 with Brahim Diaz, and he can also provide rest for Jude Bellingham — possibly even soak some Bellingham minutes to start the season as the Englishman recovers from his shoulder surgery.<\/p>\n (I wrote that first paragraph before the season started, and just left it since that\u2019s exactly what happened.)<\/p>\n Any combination of these players can co-exist, theoretically, but the success rate of putting it into practice depends of the context of the surrounding scheme and other players involved. We\u2019ve seen \u2018double 10\u2019 line-ups work plenty in European football over the past decade. But we\u2019ve also seen it lead to defensive collapse if not used properly.<\/p>\n That\u2019s why Xabi Alonso\u2019s workaround has been to put G\u00fcler deeper, and Bellingham higher. When the team is building out from the back, G\u00fcler will drop, while Bellingham will move between the lines higher up the pitch to provide an outlet. Mastantuono can fill the Bellingham piece of this puzzle, but doesn\u2019t have the deep-lying playmaking ability of G\u00fcler.<\/p>\n Whatever the case, when Bellingham returns, I don\u2019t see a symmetrical formation where a right winger occupies the third attacking zone. I\u2019m not sure how it all works with Bellingham in the team because in order to play all of Mastantuono, Bellingham, and G\u00fcler, you\u2019d have to drop a midfielder and play top-heavy, which is a dangerous game to play.<\/p>\n SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JUNE 25: Franco Mastantuono #30 of CA River Plate looks on during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group E match between FC Internazionale Milano and CA River Plate at Lumen Field on June 25, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers – FIFA\/FIFA via Getty Images) FIFA via Getty Images<\/p>\n 7. What is Jude Bellingham\u2019s best position?<\/strong><\/p>\n (No screenshot included because the person who submitted this question deleted their tweet, but it was already upvoted and I\u2019m going to answer it below.)<\/p>\n First and foremost: Jude Bellingham\u2019s best position is having him on the field somewhere \u2014 and I mean this in the most complimentary way possible. Players like him, Fede Valverde, Luka Modric, Alfredo di Stefano are so multifunctional and special \u2014 so elite at so many things \u2014 that defining their position is a bit problematic, and almost does them a disservice. This is why aforementioned players can also get underrated at times. Those who don\u2019t watch them play regularly are confused as to how to measure them, especially if they\u2019re going by analytics.<\/p>\n Bellingham is an 8, 10, 9.5, and even half of a double-6.<\/p>\n But, if we had to define him into a sharper, rigid role, I would say he\u2019s a hybrid between and 8 and a 10, and the only reason people have difficulty accepting him as a midfielder is because he went on a scoring tear to start the 2023 – 2024 season after Karim Benzema departed and it threw everyone\u2019s brains out of whack.<\/p>\n His defensive ability is best used in a pressing scheme where he can pick off passes and rack up interceptions as part of a collective defensive effort. From those positions, he\u2019s in prime real estate to play the dagger ball or get into a goal-scoring position \u2014 this is why I think he\u2019ll thrive in Xabi Alonso\u2019s blueprint.<\/p>\n I also think he\u2019ll get on the ball a lot more in a possession-based model which emphasizes control and off-ball movement. We\u2019ll see him showcase his ability to dictate \u2014 an underrated trait of his.<\/p>\n This one is incredibly straight forward. Bellingham\u2019s return as a focal point in the team is not in question. It is inevitable.<\/p>\n EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY – JULY 09: Jude Bellingham of Real enters the pitch prior to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 semi-final match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid CF at MetLife Stadium on July 09, 2025 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Marvin Ibo Guengoer – GES Sportfoto\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n Without wanting to repeat what was said above, Bellingham is everything Xabi Alonso dreams of: A jack-of-all trades that can fill in almost any position in his scheme, whether it\u2019s the Wirtz role or Palacios role, Bellingham is there: Pressing, creating, scoring, controlling.<\/p>\n What I will say: I believe Xabi Alonso can get the team to function in the event of the loss of a significant player like Jude Bellingham because I believe that the team will now be reliant on the collective system rather than star players needing to turn into a superheroes. I would not be surprised if Real Madrid play well without Bellingham (already happenning), but it will not be a sign that the team is better without him, and I\u2019d fully expect him to ease his way back into a key starting role, with the first one-or-two games back off the bench as he reacclimatizes himself into match fitness and rhythm.<\/p>\n 9. Discussing Fernando Redondo<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know if Fernando Redondo actually isn\u2019t talked about as much as Claude Makelele. It depends on who, and what generation you\u2019re speaking to. But if Redondo isn\u2019t talked about as much as Makelele, it\u2019s because Makelele\u2019s departure was connected with a catastrophic collapse of the team, whereas Redondo\u2019s departure wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Real Madrid got really lucky with Redondo\u2019s departure. Despite doing their best to spark anarchy in the streets of Madrid, pushing out a club legend \u2014 and probably the greatest defensive midfielder the world had ever seen up until that time \u2014 Makelele came in and locked the position down. The torched was passed efficiently and unintentionally.<\/p>\n Yes, unintentionally. Yes, Real Madrid should get credit for signing Makelele that summer, but clearly they didn\u2019t value him much, if, three years later, they ignored his request for a better contract despite him being as important as anyone else on the team, and gladly accepted his transfer request, leaving this parting message from Florentino: \u201cHe wasn\u2019t a header of the ball and he rarely passed the ball more than three metres. Younger players will arrive who will cause Mak\u00e9l\u00e9l\u00e9 to be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n Apart from that time my son told me he was going to beat me in a 1v1 footy game before I annihilated him, I\u2019ve never seen a quote age so badly.<\/p>\n Bullet point answers to the first two questions posed:<\/p>\n 10. Soul-sucking departures<\/p>\n If we\u2019re discounting Kroos and Makelele, there are still plenty. I\u2019ll give you (a perhaps too obvious one): Cristiano Ronaldo. Real Madrid\u2019s offense fell off a cliff in the 2018 – 2019 season.<\/p>\n A more under-the-radar one is Esteban Cambiasso. He was the perfect solution to the Makelele departure. Cambiasso fit modern football. He was not the bruising defensive midfielder that Perez complained about (and ironically later ended up with much inferior versions of that destroying, \u201ctechnically-limited\u201d player in Emerson and Mahamadou Diarra anyway). Cambiasso could dribble. He had vision. He could\u2019ve filled a Fernando Redondo role within the club: An elegant organizer who could defend but also play out of the back and contribute to the team\u2019s build-up. Plus he was free! A youth product!<\/p>\n Bullet point answers to your last question (mostly hipster stuff):<\/p>\n 11. Best game I\u2019ve been at as a fan?<\/strong><\/p>\n I wish I had a \u2018fun\u2019 answer to this. I\u2019ve only been to one game as a non-journalist, and that was in 2005: A friendly against Chivas Guadalajara in Chicago.<\/p>\n But thankfully, it does have some sentimental value.<\/p>\n Back in 2005, as my high school graduation gift, my father booked us tickets to Real Madrid\u2019s pre-season game against Chivas Guadalajara in Chicago. It was, despite it being an incredibly irrelevant game in Real Madrid\u2019s history, a match I\u2019ll never forget. It was the first time I had ever seen Real Madrid play in person.<\/p>\n FOLLOW: Kiyan Sobhani on Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Some 20 years later, I\u2019m somewhat desensitized to it. But despite seeing so many big games since, that particular one in 2005 has a special place in my heart. My dad and I watched every Real Madrid game together on the television growing up. Seeing them together in person was extra special. It was, to this day, the only time my father and I watched a Real Madrid match in person together.<\/p>\n 12. Should TV rights be distributed equally?<\/strong><\/p>\n I would be lying if I stated I wasn\u2019t worried about the league as a whole. The depth is withering. We grew up with Super Depor, Mendieta\u2019s Valencia, Riquelme\u2019s Villarreal, Xabi\u2019s La Real, Joaquin and Denilson at Betis, Sevilla perpetually good. Now? What do we have? Feel-good teams like Real Betis with Isco and Antony, Athletic Club and the Williams brothers. What else? And even that, is barely hanging on.<\/p>\n Javier Tebas is more interested in fighting piracy (ridiculous), public spats (petty), and giving unsolicited interviews (attention-seeking), than anything else.<\/p>\n Would a different TV revenue distribution system solve the problem? Possibly, but it would take time. The most recent change, which saw the TV rights change to a collective selling agreement, didn\u2019t make a difference for Real Madrid and Barcelona, but it did see the revenues of everyone else rise \u2014 but it\u2019s still not at Premier League level. Currently, La Liga has the revenue 50% distributed equally among all clubs, 25% is based on performance over the previous five seasons, and the remaining 25% is allocated based on \u201csocial implantation\u201d factors such as ticket sales, audience size, membership numbers, and social media presence. For comparison, the Premier League distributes nearly 70% of its revenue equally. Not only is the entire Premier League pool bigger, but it\u2019s also shared with more parity. Right now, fourth place teams in La Liga can have their best players picked off by 15th place teams in the Premier League.<\/p>\n SAINT-DENIS, FRANCE – MAY 24: CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINALE 99\/00, Paris\/St. Denis; REAL MADRID – VALENCIA CF 3:0; Jocelyn ANGLOMA\/VALENCIA, Roberto CARLOS\/MADRID (Photo by Henri Szwarc\/Bongarts\/Getty Images) Bongarts\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Moving towards more equal revenue share could help, long term, in stabilizing the league.<\/p>\n 13. Tactically misunderstood players<\/strong><\/p>\n Great question. How much time do you have? Given this article is already unnecessarily long and attention spans are in the mud (who is even still reading this part of the article?) \u2014 I will keep it in bullet point form (past 25 years):<\/p>\n Karim Benzema, 2009 – 2018 (pre-Cristiano departure) Claude Makelele, 2000 – 2003<\/strong><\/p>\n Ask me this again in 15 years and I\u2019ll be writing about Fede Valverde and Jude Bellingham.<\/p>\n 14. What if\u2026 Luka Modric retired before Toni Kroos?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019m happy with how everything turned out, even if that\u2019s illogical.<\/p>\n Are Real Madrid better with Toni Kroos last season? Yes. Are they guaranteed to have won a major title with him, or would the team have imploded regardless given the ACL injuries and the rise of Barca in the league?<\/p>\n I\u2019m being pessimistic about this: I think if Kroos had stayed one more year, he\u2019s not leaving out on top. We don\u2019t get one last iconic walk-off in a Champions League Final and he\u2019s no longer cited as an example of \u201cthe guy who left football before the football left him\u201d \u2014 even if it wouldn\u2019t have been his fault.<\/p>\n I\u2019m happy preserving Kroos\u2019s legacy exactly as it is. He left football on perfect terms (ignoring the Euro blip in the summer with Germany), and we will forever remember that. Too many people stick around for far too long. It\u2019s an art knowing when to walk away. Let\u2019s not tinker with this. And yes, I am fully aware Kroos was sorely needed last season.<\/p>\n MADRID, SPAIN – MAY 24: Luka Modric and Toni Kroos of Real Madrid embrace during the LaLiga match between Real Madrid CF and Real Sociedad at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on May 24, 2025 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Diego Souto\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n 15. Too much reliance on G\u00fcler to \u201ccontrol\u201d?<\/strong><\/p>\n Valid question(s) and well thought-out analysis. I may be in the minority (but I may not be, given reliable backing by the Turkish army), but: I believe that Arda G\u00fcler has what it takes. He has the vision, tempo-control, and passing that\u2019s necessary to fulfill this role. I don\u2019t believe he will do it as well as Toni Kroos or Luka Modric, but I also believe no one on earth will do it as well as Toni Kroos or Luka Modric.<\/p>\n Your concern about \u2014 God forbid \u2014 an injury to G\u00fcler is fair, especially given that Dani Ceballos, the \u2018other guy who can do it\u2019 is generally only available for half the season.<\/p>\n But I also think Jude Bellingham is underrated at controlling games, and the main reason he is underrated in this aspect is because he\u2019s a physical freak who can crash the box and score goals. Sometimes we completely forget that he models his game after Zinedine Zidane and that he\u2019s really great at setting pace.<\/p>\n In the end, if you want to find Toni Kroos and Luka Modric \u2014 their profiles to a science \u2014 good luck.<\/p>\n I think we have to trust the way Xabi Alonso will use G\u00fcler and Bellingham.<\/p>\n One last thing that\u2019s important to point out: To allow G\u00fcler the ability to set up the attackers, the attackers need to make runs into the box. If Real Madrid don\u2019t have Gonzalo Garcia or Bellingham on the field, there\u2019s only so much G\u00fcler can do with his playmaking. But, the G\u00fcler-to-Mbappe assists are one of my favourite things happenning right now.<\/p>\n 16. Vinicius\u2019s contract demands<\/strong><\/p>\n I don\u2019t think there is a black and white answer to this question; we have to lay out all of the facts and surround them with as much context as possible.<\/p>\n 17. How worried should we be about Santiago Bernabeu construction?<\/strong><\/p>\n We\u2019re almost there \u2014 in the home stretch now. The renovation is essentially complete in terms of structure\u2014the retractable roof, the futuristic skin, the pitch mechanism. What\u2019s left now are the finishing touches: fit-outs, remaining retail, hospitality, and, crucially, as you asked about: extra soundproofing. That last point is important. The club ran into trouble last year when a string of concerts sparked noise complaints from neighbours and resulted in fines. By September 2024, Madrid pressed pause on live shows altogether. Since then, they\u2019ve been working on improvements specifically designed to reduce noise leakage. The July 2025 financial report explicitly mentions \u201cnoise reduction works for concerts.\u201d Translation: it\u2019s not fully resolved yet, but they\u2019re investing to make sure it will be. The plan is for concerts to return once the city gives the green light under compliant conditions.<\/p>\n Now, how much does this matter from a financial standpoint? It\u2019s not worrying at all. The Bernab\u00e9u is already a monster revenue engine without concerts. Madrid just posted record revenue of \u20ac1.185 billion, with matchday and stadium-related income soaring thanks to VIP seating, the museum\/tour, hospitality, retail, and corporate boxes. Deloitte\u2019s benchmarking shows Madrid pulling in around \u20ac250 million in match-day alone, and that number will only grow as the building hums at full capacity.<\/p>\n Concerts, (as well as NFL games, tennis, etc)\u2014those are cherries on top, but not what the club relies on as the primary source of income. They add useful upside (tens of millions a year if it runs smoothly), but the club\u2019s core business model doesn\u2019t depend on them. Madrid\u2019s financial muscle post-renovations is rooted in football, hospitality, and commercial reach. The Bernab\u00e9u\u2019s transformation amplifies that baseline, while concerts will eventually become a lucrative bonus once the noise issue is fully put to bed.<\/p>\n 18. Players who didn\u2019t live up to expectations<\/strong><\/p>\n My \u2018mainstream\u2019 list is probably similar to yours and everyone else reading: Kaka (injuries broke him), Hazard (obvious) are top two. Pretty well every defender we signed from 2000 – 2010 struggled: Walter Samuel (world class at Roma, a bust at Real Madrid because it was much easier to defend in Italy), Fabio Cannavaro (ditto, although, to be fair, he had a very good second season at Real Madrid), Jonathan Woodgate (mostly injuries).<\/p>\n How about players who thrived in La Liga but couldn\u2019t handle the Real Madrid pressure? I\u2019m looking at Alvaro Odriozola who I thought would be the next menacing attacking right-back in the modern game; Asier Illaramdeni (just couldn\u2019t handle the spotlight and play at the same level as he did in Real Sociedad).<\/p>\n I\u2019ve give you a less mainstream one that always stands out as a special case when I get asked this question: Javier Portillo. After scoring 370 goals in the youth system, then coach Vicente del Bosque promoted him in 2001, and Portillo scored on his debut from 40 yards against Panathinaikos.<\/p>\n After that? He ended up falling horribly short of the expectations he set for himself, and spiralled into the lower divisions of Spain, \u201camassing\u201d 21 goals in 131 matches for Gimn\u00e0stic, Osasuna and H\u00e9rcules.<\/p>\n Although his one lasting moment was to save Real Madrid\u2019s season in the 2002 – 2003 Champions League second round with a last-second goal against Borussia Dortmund:<\/p>\n 19. Can Fede Valverde crack the all-time Real Madrid XI?<\/strong><\/p>\n My calculated prediction here is that Fede Valverde will, by the time he retires, by in the Real Madrid all-time squad. He has not yet surpassed Pirri or Zinedine Zidane, nor has he surpassed Fernando Redondo, who, doesn\u2019t play the same position, but, the only realistic way to fit all of Valverde, Luka Modric, and Toni Kroos in is to push Kroos back to the six.<\/p>\n But on this trajectory? Valverde is on pace. If he stays at the club for another five years (it\u2019s probably more, but let\u2019s say five for argument sake), and wins one or two more Champions Leagues, it\u2019s going to be hard to exclude him.<\/p>\n But that last name in Frendik\u2019s question \u2014 Bellingham \u2014 is also important to bring up. If Valverde wins two Champions League titles in the next five years, that means Bellingham is too, and Bellingham is five years younger than Valverde, and, at the pace he\u2019s started his Real Madrid career, bar some meteor hitting the earth, he is going to be a bonafide, A-tier legend.<\/p>\n (By the way, where does that leave Aurelien Tchouameni? He\u2019s likely the pillar of that success. He\u2019ll have to be in a conversation, shortlisted as one of the best defensive midfielders in Real Madrid history.)<\/p>\n So where does that leave things? Here is my sharpened, long-term, low-risk prediction:<\/p>\n Photo by Helios de la Rubia\/Real Madrid via Getty Images<\/p>\n 20. Should Rodrygo Goes be starting over Franco Mastantuono?<\/strong><\/p>\n This is a million dollar question, and I have a take \/ explanation of the situation.<\/p>\n If you asked me who is the better player between Rodrygo Goes and Franco Mastantuono, I would answer Rodrygo. And yes, that includes any position: left, middle, right. But I don\u2019t think Xabi Alonso is categorizing it the same way we are.<\/p>\n This is a matter of profile, not ranking. Alonso sees Rodrygo as a left winger, and he wants a more pure right winger on the opposite side. (Mastantuono is not a pure winger either, but he is more naturally right-sided.)<\/p>\n Right now (excluding the injured Endrick and Jude Bellingham), Alonso has six players for three positions, categorized as follows:<\/p>\n Left wing: Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo<\/p>\n Central forward: Kylian Mbappe, Gonzalo Garcia<\/p>\n Right wing: Mastantuno, Brahim Diaz<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-08-06-at-10.46.28-AM.png\"\/)
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