Yes, nothing will stop the Merengues
When you look at Real Madrid’s games this season, you get this feeling of seeing an untouchable team that, even struggling in the game, manage to get by no matter what. As was often the case with Zinedine Zidane for example, mainly on the European scene. Winning matches without necessarily always playing well is essential to get to the end. Make no mistake, we’re not saying that Real Madrid produce mediocre content every weekend, but the collective dynamic is so good that even in tough encounters there is always a spark or a fact. match which turns the match in favor of Carlo Ancelotti’s team.
And it is also, in good part, thanks to the level of individualities of the team. Even if at the start of the season the findings were much less optimistic, especially following the departure of Ramos and the new relatively calm summer transfer window of Florentino Pérez, the starting eleven and several rotational players are showing a hell of a level. Starting with Thibaut Courtois, imperial in his line, and this new Militao-Alaba hinge, which some even consider stronger than the classic Ramos-Varane. In the middle, the old guard is still level, while in front, Karim Benzema is again and again sparkling. What to say about Vinicius Junior, the big sensation of the season … If all these beautiful people
Then, all you have to do is look at the ranking. The Merengues, with one more match, of course, are eight points ahead of Sevilla, which is therefore still in the race mathematically, and thirteen over Betis. Atlético and FC Barcelona are dropped and are no longer contenders for the title, except for a scenario never seen in the history of La Liga. So it’s only Sevilla FC who, from a statistical point of view, can still go after Real Madrid. But both at the collective and individual level, the Andalusians seem a long way from the level of the Merengues, and it is difficult to imagine seeing them make an almost flawless course on the return from the truce …
No, the title is far from assured
As explained above, the dynamics are good, and the team grabs victory after victory without necessarily always playing well. But how long will this last? We know very well that often, these victorious cycles in the middle of the season do not hold for very little things, and that an injury or an event can change everything. There is no indication that this will happen, but we’ll have to see how Ancelotti’s troops react if they do. The – relative – lack of real guarantees in the game suggests that once Ancelotti’s lucky star wears off, it might be more difficult to get results.
The individualities are at the level, of course, but apart from a few rotational players like Marco Asensio or Fede Valverde, Carlo Ancelotti does not have that many cartridges. Many players like Eden Hazard, Isco or Gareth Bale are not really in the game anymore, and the Italian coach’s lack of rotation could prove to be detrimental in the long run. A long-lasting injury to Karim Benzema, for example, could hurt the team a lot since there are very few guaranteed players in the attacking sector.
And Real Madrid will not have an easy year 2022. In the coming weeks, the Merengues will play the Spanish Supercup, organized in the form of the Final Four in Saudi Arabia, then this double confrontation against Paris Saint-Germain and those which will follow in case of qualification. Sevilla, for example, will not have a Super Cup and its European meetings will, a priori, be less exhausting because in the Europa League the big rivals usually arrive later. A calendar far from lenient, with difficult trips on the lawn of Seville and Atlético in the second part of the season.
