4 most disappointing players for Real Madrid this season

Real Madrid embarked on a new era at the start of this season following the departures of two iconic figures. First Zidane resigned unceremoniously after guiding the club to her third consecutive Champions League crown and as if that wasn't bad enough, Ronaldo followed suit in an unforeseen record-breaking transfer to Juventus.

Los Blancos were expected to suffer a bit in their transition, as both men had left an indelible mark on the club's history, with Zidane having guided Real to her most successful period in recent years while Ronaldo in just nine seasons at the Bernabeu became arguably Real Madrid's greatest player of all time as well as their all-time record goalscorer.

While Real Madrid replaced Zinedine Zidane (albeit with disastrous consequences), there was no concerted effort to replace the otherwise unreplacable Ronaldo, as despite being linked with a host of proven goalscorers, Real did not sanction the purchase of a marquee galactico.

The season has gone below par thus far, which led to the termination of Julen Lopetegui's contract just 14 matches into it, as Madrid struggled for form and more worryingly goals and found themselves losing to opponents who were expected to be blown away.

Since Solari's appointment, some semblance of calm has been restored to the Bernabeu, but despite that, it has not all been smooth sailing. In this piece, we take a look at four players who are most culpable for Madrid's struggles this season.

#4 Sergio Ramos

Ramos has failed to lead Real Madrid from the back

The 31-year-old is widely regarded as the best centre-back in the world and rightly so, as the Spanish international has won just about everything there is to win at both international and club level.

Sergio Ramos has been an ultimate professional right from the time he was a teenager and while he might not be everyone's cup of tea due to his penchant for going over the line, it cannot be denied that Ramos is an on-field leader who leaves everything on the pitch and does everything in his power to ensure his team wins.

Ramos has always been known for his knack for scoring crucial goals and while his defending has not always been the best, Real Madrid largely got by with it because with Ronaldo around, they were always sure to get goals.

However, with the talismanic Portuguese now departed, Real's defence has been brought into sharp focus perhaps now more than ever as the goals have dried up at the other end, leading to Real dropping unnecessary points.

It is here that Sergio Ramos has flopped in his duties as skipper and leader of the defence, as he has failed to effectively marshal the defence, sometimes being at fault for some goals conceded by the club as he has often been beaten too easily or caught hopelessly out of position.

Real have conceded 19 goals from just 16 LaLiga matches which is worse than all but three of the top twelve teams and this is rather disappointing, considering that they have the presence of one of the all-time greats and if Real are to make a success of their season, Ramos must step up to the plate because as the oft-repeated saying goes, great defences win titles.

#3 Gareth Bale

Bale has not stepped up to replace Ronaldo

Signed from Tottenham in the summer of 2013 for a then world record fee, Gareth Bale struggled to replicate the form he showed with Tottenham which made Madrid splash the cash on him, as injuries and loss of form limited his impact.

A major reason for his underperformance at the Bernabeu was the presence of Ronaldo, as with the Portuguese available, there was always only gonna be one captain of the ship and that captain was Ronaldo.

Bale had shown flashes of his brilliance in the past, but not on the level or as frequently as his huge fee demanded and his lack of playing time was one which gave the Welshman cause for concern with him coming out publicly to state that he might consider a transfer if situations did not improve.

Ronaldo departed and the stage was set for Ble to become the talisman of the team, but he has largely failed to step up to the plate since the Portuguese left.

The 28-year-old has not had impacts on matches the way Ronaldo did, often having to be substituted early after putting AWOL performances.

So far this season, he has scored just 4 goals from 14 LaLiga matches with his last goal against Huesca ended a barren run in front of goal which lasted almost three months (10 hours) of LaLiga football.

Even though things have improved somewhat for Bale in recent weeks, with him tying Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as the only players to have scored in three different Club World Cup tournaments, this is still a long way off the performance which was expected of him at the start of the season.

#2 Isco

Isco was named the Golden Boy in 2012 and following his exploits in the colours of Malaga, he was made a galactico when Real Madrid swooped for his signature in 2013.

Since then, the 26-year-old has been solid if unspectacular, being a part of the club's triumphs in recent years, without playing a major role as he has drifted in and out of the side.

However, on his day, Isco is an exceptionally talented midfielder capable of unlocking any defence with his pinpoint passing and wonderful technique. However, he has always been too inconsistent to truly stake a regular place in the Real Madrid starting lineup.

This season has seen Isco sink to perhaps the lowest point of his Real Madrid career, as he has struggled horribly for form and was pointed as one of the players who were responsible for Julen Lopetegui's sack as Real Madrid boss.

Since Solari was appointed as Real boss, Isco has barely featured, while also failing to impress on the few occasions when he has.

Isco's struggles have led to him being booed by the notoriously demanding Bernabeu crowd and amidst speculations of him leaving the club, Isco must step up considerably if he is to fulfil his legacy at Real Madrid.

#1 Marco Asensio

Marco Asensio announced himself in the 2016/2017 season, putting in some fine performances as an impact substitute throughout Real's LaLiga and UCL winning campaign, including scoring a goal off the bench in the final against Juventus.

He took his stock a notch higher when he scored two wonder goals against Barcelona in the 2018 Spanish Super Cup and was earmarked as a future talent owing to his incredible shooting skill and link-up ability.

He, however, had his chances limited due to the presence of Ronaldo in the team, as the Portuguese also operated from his preferred role on the left and was always going to be the one picked off the pair.

Ronaldo's departure in the summer paved the way for Asensio to become a starter and he was earmarked as one of the players upon which the club would build post-Ronaldo.

However, six months down the line and it has not worked out exactly to plan for Real and Asensio. The club embarked on a terrible run of form earlier in the season where they went on their worst ever goalscoring run which led to the dismissal of Lopetegui and Asensio was singled out as one of the players responsible for Madrid's slump.

Since Solari's appointment, things have not improved much for Marco Asensio and he has been dropped to the bench in recent matches, with the highly impressive Vinicius staking a claim for his starting place.

Earlier in the month, the 22-year-old came out to state that it was not his responsibility to carry the team and that it was the job of more experienced players to do so which was seen as a damning indictment on his mentality and unwillingness to take on responsibilities in addition to his poor returns.

In 25 matches in all competitions this season, Asensio has scored just four goals (with three of those coming in Copa del Rey matches against much inferior opposition). The 22-year-old has just one LaLiga goal in 16 matches and has not scored since getting the lone goal in the 1-0 victory over Espanyol, while his last assist came on the opening day of the campaign.

These are not numbers expected from Asensio after getting improved playing time and while nobody expected him to hit the heights of Ronaldo, nobody expected it to be this bad either.