La Liga 2019/2020: Real Madrid's possible midfield combinations for next season

Real Madrid's woeful underperformance last season had the concordant effect of full-scale changes at the club.The first of those modulations came about in the dugout, as Zinedine Zidane was reappointed in Solari's stead barely four months into the Argentine's tenure and less than 10 months since Zidane himself vacated the post.One of the first things the Frenchman promised was a comprehensive overhaul of the squad and so far, the 46-year-old has kept good to his word, as no fewer than five new players have arrived the Bernabeu for the combined sum of £272m while four players have departed permanently with four going out on loan and more expected to follow in the coming days.Most of the modulations have been made in defense and attack, which addresses two problems the club faced last season viz: not scoring enough goals and conceding too many.Real Madrid's midfield has remained virtually untouched, with the key men still expected to play a starring role once again next season.Himself a former midfielder, Zidane knows too well the importance of a functional midfield, as it is through this department that most of the implementation of tactical drills is carried out.Heading into the new season, Zizou would attempt to get the right balance in the middle of the park. In this piece, we shall be dissecting what Real Madrid's likely midfield combinations for next season would be, and the accordant pros and cons associated with each#1 Flat four in the middleZidane could elect to play with four in the middle to accommodate both Luka Jovic and Karim BenzemaIn the not too distant past, it was a very common feat to see managers line up with four men in midfield, with two central midfielders holding the base, while traditional wingers bombarded down the flanks to deliver crosses to their two mostly stationary forwards.The rise of inverted wingers like Arjen Robben and Cristiano Ronaldo who drifted in onto their stronger foot to shoot at goal in the middle of the last decade reduced the effectiveness of more traditional wingers like Ryan Giggs and Aaron Lennon.Barcelona's unprecedented success with their immaculate trio in midfield consisting of Xavi, Iniesta, and Busquets under Guardiola virtually sent the 4-4-2 system into extinction, with most modern managers (Zidane included) playing with three in the middle.However, the arrival of Luka Jovic from Frankfurt presents a tactical conundrum for Zinedine Zidane.The 21-year-old had his breakout campaign last season where he scored 27 goals to court the attention of Europe's top clubs.Luka Jovic is a dynamic forward who can play anywhere across the frontline, but thrived best when he was deployed just behind Sebastian Haller at Frankfurt, as his excellent hold up and link up play made him an excellent asset to manager Adi Hutter and the fact that Jovic arrived for €60m means that the Serbian international is likely going to get game time.To date, Zidane's preferred attacking system has seen him operate with one central striker, but doing so would come at the expense of either Karim Benzema or Luka Jovic.However, both men are extremely suited to a two striker system and this suitability could lead to a major tactical deviation from Zidane.He could well decide to play both men upfront and this would have an effect on his midfield, as he would have four men in the middle as opposed to the three associated with him throughout his managerial career.We got a chance to see the workability of this system in the friendly fixture with Arsenal when Zidane started with a 4-4-2, but Nacho's early red card forced his manager into a tactical switch.In a 4-4-2 formation, Eden Hazard would have to drop deeper to occupy a left-wing midfield berth while Vinicius would complement him on the other wing.The game against Arsenal saw Zidane make a surprise addition to his midfield, as Lucas Vazquez was started on the right flank of midfield and the reason for this is not far fetched, as the 28-year-old has a high work ethic and can provide extra cover for the defense.An advantage to this system is that it would play to the strengths of Real Madrid's two main strikers, while a drawback is that it limits the creativity of other forwards like Eden Hazard and Vinicius Jr.

La Liga 2019/2020: Real Madrid's possible midfield combinations for next season

# 2 The double-pivot system