In the hallways of Valdebebas there is already a photo of Toni Kroos as a former white player. “Order” is the word that defines the German coach in the portrait. The Madrid that has been left without him, and without the recently injured Kylian Mbappé, faces a “very important test” at the Metropolitano, in the words of Carlo Ancelotti, to gauge the level of improvement of the team after a start in which no day It has been easy for them, not even winning 3-0 against Alavés in ’85.
Suddenly, the event offers the Italian coach the possibility of recovering the successful formation of last season, with a fourth midfielder in place of the Frenchman. If not, the most likely option would be to insist on what has been tried so far, with a third attacker, but without the French star.
The path of including another midfielder in the starting eleven, after the problems faced by Carletto in the first duels to achieve the vaunted balance, has been floating around the Ciudad Deportiva for weeks and the coaching staff considers it as a logical option, since before Mbappé’s physical mishap last Tuesday against Alavés.
The most obvious resource in that case, with everyone healthy, would be Eduardo Camavinga, although he arrives at the derby coming off the injury he suffered on August 13. This Saturday, before returning to a call, he was seen with a cumbersome bandage on his left leg. “He can play 90 minutes or zero,” Ancelotti haggled. If you don’t see it as long as starting the clash, the closest alternatives would be Luka Modric, who will turn 39 this month, or Arda Güler who is more retarded. The Croatian, who came out badly in the last Metropolitano league derby, could occupy Kroos’ position, which would result in a Madrid almost identical to last season, and with Bellingham closer to the area. The team that only ran aground with Atlético, the only rival that defeated them (twice). In the event that the coach spends miles with the three attackers, he would have the effervescent (and reckless) Endrick, or Güler’s fine boot in a more natural location for the Turk.
Fewer recoveries
The Italian has fled this campaign in public from the debate on the scheme. The only thing that has interested him is to appeal, like this Saturday, to more questions of character, sacrifice and will. To the skin more than the foot. Its most recurring message in these times is that of tight lines. “I don’t pay much attention to the system. What I look for is that the team is supportive and committed. That it is compact will be a key to the game,” claimed the coach, who once again evaluated his team’s progress this month, although with the caution of knowing that he is facing a sensitive commitment.
“I don’t pay much attention to the system, but rather that the team is supportive.”
Carlo Ancelotti
The initial stumble in Mallorca (1-1) marked his discursive line — “we must have more balance; It has been quite clear where the problem may be”—while in the privacy of Valdebebas he began to ponder the need to put more cement in the spinal cord as a remedy against the imbalance. The Metropolitan’s commitment was presented at the beginning of the week as the opportunity to measure the viability in raw matches of the type shown so far, with the three attackers. To check if balance was possible with them. However, Mbappé’s injury has opened a window for him to return to the four midfielders, something that was already on his table for sooner or later, at least in specific appointments.
Ancelotti anticipated a difficult start to the season due to the late incorporation of vacations for some players, such as Vinicius; Mbappé’s coupling; and adapting to a new life without Kroos. But I also expected better performance at times. “It’s costing us more than we thought,” he admitted in Las Palmas (1-1). The basic statistics do not warn of major differences compared to the previous year, although there is one fact that does help explain some of their difficulties: they recover six fewer balls per game (39.8 compared to 45.6). A figure that refers to what the Italian never stops demanding: more sacrifice.
The improvement of the whites in recent games, driven above all by the awakening of Vinicius and the return of Bellingham, is examined in the ardor of the Metropolitan. Without Mbappé.
