Five reasons why Real Madrid will successfully defend the La Liga title 

#3 Casemiro factor

Casemiro has been an important figure for Madrid

It is not often that a holding midfielder gets credit for what he does for the team. After all, they are the ones that do the less-glamorous job of winning the ball back and providing a defensive shield to the backline.

However, in this case, I will go against the norm and praise Carlos Henrique Casemiro. Ever since joining Real Madrid, the Brazilian seems to have reached new heights.

It is no coincidence that the Galacticos were triumphant in the Champions League for two successive seasons with the former Porto loanee as a starter. Against United in the European Super Cup, he showed superb improvement in the one thing that he was criticised for earlier: ability on the ball.

He played some cracking passes – one which led to Gareth Bale being one-on-one with De Gea – and scored the first goal for the Whites with a fabulous finish. Casemiro’s rise gives Zidane an X-factor in crunch games.

The Frenchman could use him as a box-to-box midfielder with the freedom to make occasional forward runs and dismantle the opponent’s system in the process. This new-found variety could help Real Madrid defend their league title.