Real Madrid have been in a slump of late with one win in the last three games. A loss against Valencia and a dramatic 3-3 draw against Las Palmas has put Zidane in a tough spot. Los Blancos have lost their leadership in La Liga with Barcelona currently top.
Madrid do have a game in hand but at this moment it is very clear the club are in crisis. Zidane's men need to win their game today but they might have to drop Sergio Ramos if they need to have more success. At least that’s what the stats point to.
Los Blancos are more defensively fragile when Ramos is in the side. The captain has played 16 league games so far for Madrid and in that time the team have only managed to keep a clean sheet on three occasions.
Out of the 2160 minutes, he has spent on the pitch, Madrid have let in 21 goals. That's a goal every 68 minutes. In fact, when Ramos hasn't played Madrid have been more solid at the back.
In 8 league games, Madrid have only conceded 4 goals. To be exact in 738 minutes without Ramos, Madrid have let in a goal every 185 minutes. You could argue he makes up the numbers when going forward.
Ramos is the second highest scorer for Real Madrid this season behind Cristiano Ronaldo. But maybe Ramos is proving to be more of a liability than an asset. The fact that Madrid have had so many injuries at the back has not helped their cause.
Ramos has played with three different defensive partners which include Pepe Nacho and Varane. This makes forming a partnership difficult and also affects the consistency of the team’s performance.
The most important thing when sustaining a title challenge is being able to produce good performance after good performance and Ramos’ current scenario of having to deal with different partners every game does not make it easier.
Zidane made a strong statement when asked about Madrid’s current predicament. Speaking to the press he said, “I think there is too much negativity. But like always, after a game when you don't do well enough. This happens at a lot of big clubs. We are thinking about the positives, and in what we can improve. This negativity will always be there around clubs like these.”
Ronaldo will not be available for the game against Eibar. Madrid have the chance to go back to the top of the table temporarily with a win. Barcelona host Celta Vigo in a late night kick off.
