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#1 Cristiano Ronaldo's imminent departure
This is a time of huge change for Los Blancos because Zinedine Zidane stepped down as manager after winning a third consecutive Champions League title. It also looks likely that they will have to replace their main star and chief goalscorer. He is close to joining Italian Champions Juventus.
Ronaldo has been linked with moves away previously, but this appears to be different because his relationship with Florentino Perez seems to have broken down.
He is key to their high goal output, with 44 goals in 44 games across all competitions last season. The team is built to provide him with plenty of service because they have a well-balanced midfield as well as Karim Benzema basically acting as a playmaker in order to facilitate Ronaldo's output at the expense of his own.
There are only a few players who can replicate that output even in a well-built team, so they are likely to suffer a downturn in the immediate future. Bringing in another top player to replace him should be a priority, and Perez is unlikely to miss an opportunity to do this after a number of austere seasons by Real's standards.
Real will still have a talented squad without him, but his goals took them to the next level. He's had a knack for scoring crucial goals in the Champions League over the past few seasons, although some of his teammates have been the key performers in the last four finals they have won.
The adjustment will be significant and that means that the upcoming season could be a period of transition as his replacement gets used to the club and the style that Lopetegui opts to bring in. The overhaul with the new manager coming in was likely to be significant, regardless, and this just adds to that because the focus of their attacking efforts was providing him with consistent service. Barcelona and potentially Atletico Madrid are set to benefit from that in the short-term.
