Real Madrid: the same problems, and still no cure

Beaten (2-1) by Atlético in the derby on Sunday, José Mourinho's Real Madrid 2.0, already lagging behind in the Liga title race, are blaming the refereeing to mask blatant collective shortcomings and the incompatibility of the Mbappé-Vinicius-Bellingham trio.

In Madrid, coaches come and go, but on the field and behind the scenes, nothing has really changed.

With the return of "The Special One," Real Madrid's armada of stars, without a major title for two years, was supposed to regain order and some fundamental principles. Instead, they are already condemned to chase their eternal rival, FC Barcelona, the reigning two-time Spanish champions and unshakeable leaders with a six-point advantage before the international break.

After this second defeat in seven matches, the culprits are, as is often the case at Real Madrid, easy to find: the referees. The very same ones who, according to president Florentino Pérez, "stole 7 La Liga titles" and "14 points" from him last season – no less – to benefit Barça.

This time it is referee Miguel Angel Ortiz Arias and video referee delegate Daniel Jesus Trujillo who find themselves, with printed screenshots to back them up, accused by the Madrid coach of having forgotten "two red cards" against Lee Kang-in and Cristian Romero for studs-up challenges on Federico Valverde and Jude Bellingham.

Mourinho, accustomed to this kind of communication strategy, however refused to enter into his president's conspiracy theory, unlike his predecessor Alvaro Arbeloa, admitting that his team lacked "many things", beyond the refereeing issue.

- Collective nothingness -

To begin with, in the absence of a real sporting plan, with a game plan and a collective structure worthy of the highest level.

This is far from being the case, despite the arrival of seven recruits this summer, including Marc Cucurella, one of the best left-backs in the world, Ibrahima Konaté, French international centre-back, and the Ivorian Yan Diomandé, one of the greatest hopes of world football, bought for a king's ransom.

On Sunday, at the Metropolitano, the Merengues were once again unable to create any play, and even accepted to let their opponents have the ball without pressing or collective organization to try to recover it.

On several occasions, some pro-Real journalists tore their hair out in the press box when they saw their team split in two, with French midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni alone to defend against three players between the centre and the right side, while Mbappé, Vinicius and Bellingham were walking back.

- Vinicius at rock bottom -

The two teams were then eleven against eleven, and the three superstars have little excuse to explain this lack of solidarity, sometimes compensated by their individual talent, certainly, but not enough since the start of the season to justify it.

The French striker, who scored seven goals in seven games, and the English midfielder, systematically forced to fill the gaps, are relatively spared from criticism, directed primarily at "Vini", replaced by Diomandé in the 54th minute after another catastrophic performance.

Since his contract extension in early August, until 2032, the Brazilian winger, clumsy in front of goal and unable to eliminate his opponent or combine with his teammates, has not progressed.

Some observers logically point to the choice of the Merengue management to offer a golden contract to a player who is still struggling to regain his level of the 2023-24 season, when he finished second in the Ballon d'Or... behind a certain Rodri, promised to Real and snatched by Barça at the end of the transfer window.

Many supporters and influential voices in the Spanish press are calling for strong choices from José Mourinho to revive his team: starting with Diomandé starting on the left instead of Vinicius, and making a decision in midfield between Bellingham and Güler, as well as between Tchouaméni and Valverde.

The first answers are expected after the break, at the beginning of October, against Villarreal in La Liga, then AS Roma in the Champions League, one of Mourinho's former clubs. There is no room for error.