The end. The Club World Cup is over for Real Madrid sooner than expected. Beating PSG, who were coming off a treble and are a well-oiled machine, was a tough task for a team still under construction, but no one expected the French side to give Xabi Alonso’s team such a thrashing. The team’s overall performance left a lot to be desired, with only two players standing out: Courtois and Fede Valverde. Both have shown, along with the suspended Dean Huijsen, that they are essential to the smooth running of the team.
Three pillars of Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid
There are many conclusions to be drawn from Real Madrid’s Club World Cup, and one of them is undoubtedly that there are three key players in Xabi Alonso’s system.
We are talking about Courtois, who is a safe pair of hands between the sticks, Fede Valverde, who continues to be an all-rounder, and Dean Huijsen, who is a safe bet in defense and contributes a lot in bringing the ball out of defense and creating play. The center back made a mistake in the quarterfinal match and was unable to play against PSG, which was noticeable with several grotesque errors in the defensive line.
Huijsen arrived at the club this summer and his performance has been outstanding since his arrival, becoming an undisputed starter for Xabi Alonso. The coach has publicly stated that he is “another of the pillars and the personality with which he arrives at places has been demonstrated. With the national team and with us. In matches and on a daily basis. He’s a great signing. We have to support him, push him, because he has room for improvement. He can’t relax. But I’m happy to have Dean with us.”
Those who did play against PSG were Courtois and Valverde, who were the only ones to pass the test. The goalkeeper was let down by his teammates’ mistakes, but he was decisive when he had the chance to be. This is something the Belgian has been doing all season, as he demonstrated with a number of saves against Pachuca and his last-minute stop against Borussia. Last night, Valverde returned to right-back and, as expected, did his job well. He did what he could in the chaos of the game and in a position that is not his own and where he has not shone throughout the World Cup.
Important, but with room for improvement
There are two other players who are proving vital to Xabi Alonso’s system, but who have room for improvement, as was clear in the match against PSG. We are talking about Arda Güler and Tchouaméni. Xabi Alonso himself has said on several occasions to the press that both have a lot of potential and room for improvement, but that there are things to work on that can be done through playing. In both cases, the areas for improvement lie in their defensive work. Last night against PSG, Tchouaméni was overwhelmed by the anarchy reigning in the team after conceding two goals so early on. He failed to step in between the two center backs to fix the situation, nor did he contribute to the build-up play to try to turn the game around.
As for Arda, little was seen of the architect of recent games. He ran more after the ball but had very little of it. He was overwhelmed by the situation and, to be the midfielder the team needs, you have to know how to survive these games of maximum defensive and tactical demands.