Why Real Madrid should play Cristiano Ronaldo as a centre forward

Can Cristiano Ronaldo thrive as a centre forward for Real Madrid next season?

There comes a time in life where change becomes a demand, and it is a season of changes at Real Madrid Club de Futbol. After changing managers from Carlo Ancelotti to Rafa Benitez, the smell of the mist around the Bernabeu is all but a mixed one. The fans aren’t sure whether sacking the Italian was correct in the first place, but many of them are on the optimistic side with the arrival of sorts of the prodigal son.

And with his arrival, a domino effect has commenced as the medical team and the rest of the coaching staff has seen a massive overhaul. It has not only been limited to that as the chipping and chopping have extended to the playing staff and tactics as well. There have been numerous rumours regarding tactical changes with the Spaniard at the helm and one of them is playing Cristiano Ronaldo as a centre forward with Karim Benzema either as a back-up or a number 10.

Ronaldo is a scoring-machine – and that is pretty much all that he is these days. He gets his fair share of assists, but he is no longer the dribbler that he was at United. Long gone are the days where he received the ball deep on the wing and dribbled past a number of players before finding the back of the net.

These days, he is more of a box player. A more glorified, efficient and stronger version of Ruud van Nistelrooy. One shot inside the box, one goal – that is what mostly happens. And this isn’t a bad thing at all.

Can Ronaldo play as a centre forward?

This change in approach began in his very first season at Madrid under Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean saw the enormous goal-scoring potential and drive in him and played him as a number 9 on many occasions in his diamond 4-4-2 formation, a system he used every once in a while.

Ronaldo thrived, and that set the tone up for the coming years as the Portuguese focused more on being as close to the goal as possible while receiving the ball instead of dribbling with it. While his dribbling skills began to decline, his finishing became the best in the world – on par with Lionel Messi.

And this change brought him two Ballon d’Ors in a row.

So now Rafa Benitez will let go of all pretentiousness of playing him on the left as a faux 9 and play him straight up – so say the media at least. There are a number of advantages in playing him as the main striker, but the initial focus will be on the not-so-pretty side of playing him there.

What are the problems with playing Ronaldo up front?

Will Karim Benzema have a future at Real Madrid if Ronaldo plays up front?

Ronaldo as number 9 means Karim Benzema’s playing time gets reduced from what it was last season. The Frenchman had a great season until he succumbed to injury. His career with the Galacticos began with a number of hiccups and it wasn’t until his third season that he found his feet at the club.

And now he is one of the primordial figures in the team. And if the rumours are true and both Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos leave, he will become one of the four captains of the team – and that is some feat for a non-Spaniard given the fact that Madrid are not known to keep a player for long. So a limited playing time could result in a disgruntled Benzema and the club then risk losing one of their best players in the process. However, this is quite far-fetched and is unlikely to happen.

The second problem with playing the former Sporting and Manchester United star as the striker is that he will lose the X-factor that he has while lurking on the left-wing and attacking the goal from the flank. It is this subtlety of attack that left so many defenders perplexed while trying to read his movements.

This is also a minor problem as he could very well attack from the wings whenever he wants to. He could simply move to the wings if the marking is too tight or if he's getting closed down ruthlessly in the middle.

Playing Ronaldo up front unleashes Gareth Bale

With Cristiano at centre forward, the goals will come thick and fast. He already scores at least 50 goals a season and that number could go even higher with him playing up front. And that is just what Real Madrid need. Another benefit of playing him in the centre is the team will be more defensively balanced. As an inside-left forward, he rarely tracks back to defend, leaving the left-back – usually Marcelo – with a lot of work to do on defence.

If he plays as a striker, no longer will that be an issue as the player on the left – who will, most likely, be Gareth Bale – will put in a better shift than him. The left-back will have more help and the system will be more balanced.

With Ronaldo up front, Gareth Bale could switch to the left flank where he thrived at Tottenham

This brings the next point straight-up: Gareth Bale on the left flank. The left-wing is home for the Welshman. He started his career as a left-back, before being converted to a winger. Then the game against Inter Milan happened – where he ripped Maicon to shreds and put him in perpetual decline ever since.

It was on the left-wing where he made himself renowned as a world class player. It was there where he became the best player in the Premier League before his transfer and it was for performances from the left that made Real Madrid pay £86 million for him. The former Spurs star had a great first season with the club playing on the right-wing. This season, however, defenders have found a way to stop him by choking him and denying him space and he has not been the same player ever since.

Once he moves back to the left, he will be at his natural best – a position where he can use his pace and long control dribbling style to full effect. Just the image of Gareth Bale running at full speed on the left and crossing the ball on the run to a leaping Ronaldo could bring sleepless nights to the lives of many defenders.

The other option, though unlikely, would be to play Gareth Bale in the hole – as a number 10. Andre-Villas Boas used this tactic a lot and that fully unlocked Bale’s goal-scoring ability. However, with Cristiano being the main scorer and the focal point of the system, Bale would be better off in a support role rather than a scoring role.

Who will play behind Ronaldo?

Finally, another rumour that has been making the rounds, an interesting tactic would be to play Karim Benzema in the number 10 role. The Frenchman wears the number 10 shirt for France and has the necessary skill set to play there. Benzema can never really be labelled as a devastating goal-scorer; he is much more than just that. His job in the team is highly underrated as Ronaldo and Bale do the majority of the scoring (though, the former Lyon man scored more than the latter).

However, it is his selfless playing style that allows the two most expensive players in the world to attack as much as they like. One could almost claim that had Benzema been the focal point of Madrid’s system, they might as well have functioned better as a unit. His silky and one-touch approach to the game has won many admirers. It is this ability that makes Real so good on the counters. He can release the ball accurately – and incisively – within two touches and set up his teammates.

There is not another player in the Madrid team that plays one-touch flicks better than him. If he does indeed play as a number 10, Cristiano Ronaldo could be the luckiest player in the world with Bale on his left and Benzema behind him.

Toni Kroos or Modric – who would play behind Ronaldo?

Or, one of Luka Modric or Toni Kroos could play as the advanced playmaker. Both these players have played as deep midfielders in their entire time at the capital club. That, however, is not their natural position as they both made their name playing as number 10s.

With any of them as number 10s, not only would Cristiano have someone who could provide inch-perfect through balls to him, the team would also be more balanced as they could incorporate a rugged midfielder in deep – someone like Casemiro, who has had a stellar season at Porto.

Playing Cristiano at centre forward opens up so many doors and the aforementioned ones are just a few of them. As of now, looking at the way he has evolved, Real Madrid would be better off playing him at centre forward and utilizing his scoring potential to the fullest, while also bringing more balance to the team and keeping his fitness better as he wouldn’t have to run as much as a striker than he does when he plays on the wing.