Real Madrid 3-2 Levante: 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis | La Liga 2019/20

#5 A few of Real Madrid’s ailments are cured but the rest remain

Zidane still has a few questions to answer

Real Madrid endured a terrible 2018-19 season. A sluggish start to the term was compounded by a managerial change after an El Clasico thrashing and everything fell off a cliff after the replacement manager was also sacked.

Zinedine Zidane was installed at the helm for the final stretch and he was handed an enormous transfer purse in the summer to mould the side as per his wishes.

Unsurprisingly, he splashed the cash and brought on board Eden Hazard, Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy, Luka Jovic and Rodrygo.

Those changes meant that Los Blancos had acquired several offensive players capable of providing a spark.

A few of those featured against Levante, with Hazard in particular setting the Santiago Bernabeu ablaze in his brief stint as a substitute.

Moreover, the attack, which was accused of lacking a cutting edge last term, showed plenty of it in key areas, thereby allowing Los Blancos to create a host of openings.

Yet, despite the flamboyant signings, the questions over their defence still remained and on Saturday, it became clear that a remedy hadn’t been arrived at.

In the second half, the hosts were nearly pegged back as they left loads of spaces at the back for Levante to exploit.

Marcelo played high up the pitch and wide, meaning that Madrid were susceptible to swift counter-attacks.

Also, the withdrawal of Casemiro cast Kroos into the holding midfielder role. And while the German is an exceptional footballer, he most certainly isn’t a defensive-minded player.

Thus, the ailments that plagued Los Blancos at the end of the 2018-19 season reared its ugly head, again.

And, for all the attacking prowess Real Madrid possess, they could yet come unstuck this term, especially if they fail to rectify the defensive chinks existing in their armour.