Real Madrid: Season preview 2013-2014

Isco – will he live up to the hype?

Real Madrid had a good summer. Well, not by Galactico standards, but there has been a sense of stability since Carlo Ancelotti took over from Jose Mourinho in the summer. Signings were made keeping in mind long term prospects and there are even rumours that Ronaldo is going to sign a contract extension. A very good summer indeed.

After a tempestuous last season, Madrid will look to regain some of their pride by giving Barcelona a tough time in the league as opposed to the velvet carpet they laid out for Barca to cruise over last season and also claim the long long awaited La Decima. They have the squad to achieve both these objectives, and to put Madrid right on top of the list of Most Fearsome Teams alongside both FCBs.

Summer activity and players to watch out for

Real Madrid has made such good signings this summer that I wonder if Florentino Perez made a secret trip to La Masia after winning his third term as president. Watching Barca take the world by storm with the help of technically excellent players in whom they invested from a very young age, Real Madrid finally seem to be coming to terms with the fact that throwing money away is not the answer to everything.

A new direction for Madrid

Of course, Barca had their own disasters in the transfer market as long as we are talking about throwing money away, but you get the point. Although Madrid are still going after Bale, the signings of Isco (21), Dani Carvajal (21), Casemiro (21) and Illarramendi (23), shows the that a mixture of youth and proven technical excellence has driven their transfer activity this summer.

Isco

Widely voted the best player at this year’s Euro Under-21?s, Isco is the most exciting creative talent to watch out for alongside Thiago in the years to come. Having helped Malaga to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, Isco was destined for an exit out of the financially unstable club and Madrid wasted no time in wrapping up the £23 million deal.

Will Isco live upto the hype?

He has been touted as the faster version of Fabregas (Imagine that!) and is two-footed with an ability to find spaces that has been compared to Iniesta by his coaches. Not bad players to draw a comparison with. Fortunately for Madrid, he can play on either flank, but is most effective through the middle and is expected to give Mesut Ozil tough competition for the slot behind the striker.

Illarramendi

The next Xabi Alonso, as he is being called, commanded a £34 million transfer fee and is expected to give Alonso good competition. With the energetic guys Khedira and Casemiro also involved, the deep midfield is going to be an interesting area of the pitch for Madrid this season.

Illarramendi is supposedly a carbon copy of Alonso having come up from the ranks of Real Sociedad, who he helped secure Champions League qualification, like Alonso himself. Seeing as, how important Alonso was and is, for the Madrid machine to run without hiccups, Illarramendi is going to be a key figure, if age begins to take its toll on Alonso. So, expect to see him a lot this season.

By the way, here were two young exciting midfield talents of different brands to choose from. Where was Manchester United when all this was happening?

Dani Carvajal

Now you might say I am just listing all their transfers. What can I do? They signed good players and they are all players to watch out for. The Carvajal signing is somewhat similar to a Barca dealing in that the player emerged from the youth system of Real Madrid and sold to Leverkusen with a buy-back option.

Ronaldo – he’ll have to show the way

Dani Carvajal, Madrid’s Jordi Alba

After winning a place in the Bundesliga Team of the Season, Carvajal was destined to return to Madrid and also, you remember how Neymar toyed with Arbeloa in the Confed Cup final? I bet Perez didn’t want to see a repeat of those scenes in the Clasicos. Carvajal’s arrival now makes the defense department of Madrid injury-proof and at 21 years of age, he can become a Bernabeu favorite in quick time, much like Saint Iker.

Ronaldo

Duh! At 28 years of age, Ronaldo is in his prime right now, and that does not bode well for many. Having a variety of midfield ammunition to choose from, this season can be his best till now and also a Ballon d’Or winning one. When he bags a new contract (which should be soon), Ronaldo will feel that the club values him as he should be and his gratitude will surely be delivered in bags of goals and maybe even assists.

Ronaldo: A Ballan d’Or finally?

With the absence of Higuain, there is a possibility that Ronaldo will be asked to lead the line occasionally, when Benzema is injured or benched, and although he doesn’t prefer it, it will hold interest for Ancelotti and the fans alike to see if it reaps rich rewards. And if it does, I don’t think CR7 will complain too much either.

Bale or no Bale? Does it matter, really?

The Bale saga will most likely continue till the end of the transfer window and whether it happens or not, it is not really a do-or-die situation. If anything, it will create chaos and confusion more than anything else in an already crowded attack. What is more important is whether Madrid should go into the market looking for a replacement for Higuain or put their faith into their young players, Morata and Rodriguez, two players who also did well at the Euro Under-21?s.

Higuain is a good goal-scorer. His contribution is overshadowed by Ronaldo and to a lesser extent, Benzema, as he doesn’t have their natural skills when he is on the ball. He is more of a poacher who is there at the right place at the right time to tap the ball in. And so he was sold.

How badly will Madrid miss Higuain?

But as time progresses, Madrid may miss him more than they thought, and it will be interesting to see whether Ancelotti places more faith in the Madrid youth than Mourinho did, especially when under the intense pressure of delivering results week in week out.

With the inclusion of Neymar, Barca have strengthened their firepower and the lack of a good defense may not prove to be much of an issue in the two-horse race of La Liga. To reclaim the Liga throne from them will be no easy task, but Real will feel that they have a very good chance of doing just that with the infusion of fresh young talent in the form of Isco and Co. and the experience of proven stars like Ronaldo, Ozil, Ramos, Alonso.