Every glorious stage has its end in the world of football. Last Wednesday, there was no miracle at the Etihad Stadium. Manchester City He made his house a fortress to leave without Champions League to the reigning champion, real Madrid: He thrashed it 4-0, including dancing, and what has become clear in this 2022/23 is that age has taken its toll on Carlo Ancelotti’s squad today.
Proof of this was the performance of Luka Modric (37 years old) and Toni Kroos (33) in the Merengue midfielder. Although for more than ten years, the Croatian and German have brought so much joy to the people at the Santiago Bernabéu, now -like everything in this life- this cycle seems to have come to an end and Pep Guardiola, Kevin De Bruyne and the Champions League they can confirm it.
In England, Guardiola opted to include four midfielders (Rodri, John Stones, Ïlkay Gündogan and Kevin De Bruyne) and said system revealed the innumerable deficiencies that the two legends of Madrid have been showing in matches of maximum intensity.
So, Jude Bellingham has become a pressing need in midfield for Florentino Pérez Looking ahead to next season and logically, his signing will require a surprise start in Madrid.
As recalled, Florentino has been negotiating for the last few months the renewal of Modric and Kroos (their contracts expire on June 30, 2024), but the scandalous elimination could make him change his mind at the last minute.
Ancelotti on the tightrope
In addition, real Madrid enters a restructuring process, after being left out of the Champions and one of the main changes would go from the head: Carlo Ancelotti. The doubt that exists is to give it continuity for two seasons or change the process with a new strategist. Given this uncertainty, Florentino Pérez’s agenda includes names that could take his place.
The decision on the future of Ancelotti is unknown. They do not seek to improvise after what happened with Julen Lopetegui: the Spaniard did not fit in and left without pain or glory and even had to resign from the Spanish National Team. The most reliable person would be Zinedine Zidane, since Deschamps’ continuity in the French National Team frustrated his opportunity to reach the French bench.
However, it would not be the only option. Xabi Alonso is liked by the board, but he has made it clear that he does not want to lead a big team. At Bayer Leverkusen he is satisfied and does not want to take a hasty leap. Florentino Pérez likes the profile of Álvaro Arbeloa, who is studying at Juvenil A with a passing grade. In this sense, the option of joining Xabi with Arbeloa as second attracts.
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