Real Madrid arrive at the international break in a state of evident tiredness. The highly demanding season, the lack of necessary rotation and the accumulation of matches have taken their toll on Carlo Ancelotti‘s players, who, in many cases, have already played over 3,000 minutes.
The number and the workload of matches this year have increased considerably as all teams are participating in every competition there is, including the upcoming Club World Cup, which means that the already limited amount of rest they get is further reduced. This situation became evident in the last game against Villarreal, where players like Bellingham and Mbappé ended up exhausted after having spent 120 minutes in the Champions League just over 67 hours ago.
To this we must add that many of the players will travel with their national teams, which will increase the physical overload for an important end of season, with the Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League at stake.
Ancelotti and the lack of rotation at Real Madrid
One of the biggest problems the Whites have is the lack of confidence Ancelotti shows in the less regular players. Up to seven players have played more than 3,000 minutes this season, with Fede Valverde (3,694), Kylian Mbappé (3,500) and Antonio Rüdiger (3,400) being the most demanded. Also on this list are the names of Courtois, Bellingham, Tchouaméni and Vinicius.
On the contrary, the players Endrick and Güler are hardly getting any opportunities despite showing their quality when they played. Endrick has not reached 500 minutes and Güler is around 1,500. Camavinga, who could be another alternative for the midfield, is also having little continuity in the games.
Injuries have made this situation worse. Without Militao and Carvajal for much of the season, the Italian coach has had to rely on the same players. If it hadn’t been for the emergence of academy graduate Raúl Asencio, Madrid would only have had one reliable centre-back: Rüdiger.
Florentino Pérez’s lack of signings
The wear and tear has also increased due to the lack of replacements. Florentino Pérez decided not to bring in replacements for Militao and Carvajal when they were injured, relying on what he had in the squad instead of reinforcing the positions the team needed.
This decision has left Madrid without depth in certain positions, forcing Ancelotti to overwork the starters. Such a demanding season does not forgive having a short squad.
Comparison with their direct rivals
An analysis of the accumulated playing minutes of the other LaLiga teams makes it very clear how obvious the comparison is; thus, in the case of FC Barcelona, only Koundé and Raphinha have reached 3,400 minutes of play; while in the case of Atlético de Madrid, only Oblak and Griezmann have accumulated more than 3,000 minutes.
The two teams have been better at redistributing their efforts, achieving more continuous rotations and a much more distributive use of their squads by their coaches. In the case of Real Madrid, the lack of confidence of their coaches in the substitutes, together with the absence of signings, has pushed the most outstanding members of their squad to the limit.
Will Ancelotti be able to find solutions? Efforts have to be shared, and if Real Madrid want to be at the top in May they will have to manage the physical condition of the players who have played a lot of matches. Otherwise, injuries and lack of energy could affect the end of the season for a team that needs to be at its best in the final stretch if it wants to achieve its objectives.