4 things we learned about Real Madrid in August

After winning the UEFA Champions League and La Liga double last season and signing the best player in the world in the summer, 2024/25 was supposed to be pretty plain sailing for Real Madrid.

That hasn't been the case thus far though.

Los Blancos have struggled for form heading into the September international break, and already sit a precarious four points adrift of early pacesetters Barcelona in the La Liga title race.

Here's everything we've learned from Madrid's start to the 2024/25 campaign.

1. Kylian Mbappe has the weight of the world on his shoulders...

If you've been in Spain on your holidays over the past few weeks, you'll have probably walked past a kiosk filled to brim with newspapers that had Kylian Mbappe's face emblazoned on them.

Thanks to the sports dailies in Spain (AS, Sport, Mundo Deportivo), every single facet of Mbappe's life as a Real Madrid player has been scrutinised by the press - especially after he failed to score in his first few La Liga games.

It's a pressure that no other player in world football is having to deal with right now...

2. ...But he's good enough to cope

...But it's a pressure that Mbappe is clearly capable of dealing with.

After a few La Liga games without a goal, the France superstar made his mark in the clash with Real Betis at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The forward's two goals - that earned a 2-0 win - were the perfect exemplification of what he can bring to Madrid this season.

3. Replacing Toni Kroos won't be easy

While all the talk has been about how Real Madrid's new Mbappe-led attacking lineup will function heading into the 2024/25 season, the real tactical problem Carlo Ancelotti has faced is in midfield.

That's largely because of Toni Kroos' absence.

The midfielder retired at the end of the 2023/24 season, and has left Madrid without a metronomic presence in the middle of the park.

Although Aurelien Tchouameni, Federico Valverde, and Eduardo Camavinga are all fantastic players in their own right, none have the skillset that Kroos had and none have been able to dictate the tempo of Madrid's early season games in the way he would've either.

It's a big problem, and one that doesn't have an obvious fix.

4. Arda Guler deserves more game time

Having been one of the breakout stars of Euro 2024, Real Madrid fans were expecting to see quite a lot of Arda Guler at the start of the 2024/25 season.

So far, that hasn't been the case.

The youngster has been restricted to just 97 minutes and one start in La Liga, with Dani Ceballos even being relied upon to fill in for the injured Jude Bellingham instead.

It's a rather perplexing situation given Guler's ceiling and his performances at the tail-end of 2023/24 - he bagged five goals in five appearances - and one which Madrid fans will be hoping is resolved before the Turkey star requests a move elsewhere.

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