Three solutions to the left-side problem that Mourinho must address at Real Madrid

The 2-1 decision to Atletico Madrid connected Sunday near a mediocre content beyond the effect itself. Real Madrid's driblet successful strength during the 2nd fractional — a recurring signifier this play — was troubling enough. But the lucifer besides highlighted an underlying structural occupation that predates Jose Mourinho's accomplishment astatine the club: the tactical congestion caused by Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior converging connected the near broadside of the pitch.

Vinicius Junior has owned the near flank since the Carlo Ancelotti era, erstwhile the Italian brag built overmuch of Real Madrid's attacking play astir the Brazilian and developed him into a Ballon d'Or contender successful 2023-24. Since Mbappe arrived astatine the Santiago Bernabeu the pursuing summer, however, the Frenchman's inclination to drift wide near alternatively than stay cardinal has created a persistent occupation — 1 that SofaScore's mean presumption information made starkly disposable successful some the Atletico decision and the 3-2 triumph implicit Elche that preceded the planetary break.

Real Madrid: what Mbappe and Vinicius Junior's left-side dominance is really costing

Having a preferred broadside of the transportation to onslaught is not unusual, and not problematic successful itself. Almost each squad concentrates information done 1 transmission alternatively than 3 equally. The contented for Mourinho's broadside is the imbalance that the 2 players' shared penchant creates.

When Mbappe drifts into the portion occupied by Vinicius Junior, the cardinal attacking country is vacated. Real Madrid's signifier indispensable displacement near to supply enactment for both, giving opponents the accidental to compact their antiaircraft artifact and transmission everything into the wide country — wherever the abstraction is people narrower and idiosyncratic duels are much hard to win.

Without Mbappe occupying a menace successful the container — making runs successful behind, pulling defenders crossed — absorption sides find it straightforward to compress and defend. This partially explains Vinicius Junior's subdued performances truthful acold this season and his accrued antiaircraft work nether Mourinho. His ain idiosyncratic signifier has besides been inconsistent, but the contention for abstraction connected the near is making a hard concern considerably harder.

Real Madrid: the weakened close broadside and the wider consequences

The close flank has suffered arsenic a nonstop consequence. Brahim Diaz and Arda Guler — some utilized connected that broadside by Mourinho — thin to chopped wrong erstwhile they person the shot alternatively than driving wide and crossing. Jude Bellingham contributes from heavy arsenic a precocious runner into the area. Neither provides the aforesaid width and directness that Vinicius Junior offers connected the left.

Players compensate by shifting centrally, which creates further corporate disorganisation and makes the task of defending successful a heavy artifact adjacent simpler for opponents. Against lower-ranked opposition, Mourinho has utilized Carlos Espi from the seat arsenic an exigency solution. The physically imposing centre-forward has contributed decisive goals precisely due to the fact that helium fulfils the cardinal relation that Mbappe vacates erstwhile helium drifts wide — occupying defenders and stretching the antiaircraft enactment aerially. Against better-organised opponents, the deficiency of genuine right-side menace becomes much costly and the left-side predictability compounds the problem.

Real Madrid: wherefore simply switching the attackers' positions does not work

The intuitive solution — enactment Mbappe done the mediate and determination Vinicius Junior to the close — is much analyzable than it appears. It creates its ain tactical occupation successful the antiaircraft phase.

Mbappe has improved his pressing and ball-winning enactment since the World Cup, and Mourinho tin reasonably inquire him to property opposing centre-backs and triumph the shot successful precocious blocks. That is simply a manageable request. Asking him to way wide attackers backmost down the antiaircraft enactment arsenic a left-wing work — absorbing the carnal load of a accepted wide subordinate doing antiaircraft shuttle runs — is an wholly antithetic demand. Freeing him of that work would simply springiness opponents a consecutive corridor to exploit connected the near whenever Real Madrid transition.

Real Madrid: the 3 imaginable answers to Mourinho's dilemma

The archetypal enactment is simply a greater relation for Yan Diomande, who is inactive adapting to Spanish shot aft his summertime determination from RB Leipzig. The Ivory Coast winger has the gait to thrust astatine defenders connected the extracurricular and the two-footedness to beryllium effectual connected the close — providing thing adjacent to the menace Vinicius Junior brings connected the other flank. The 2nd extremity against Elche showed precisely that potential, with Federico Valverde releasing Diomande successful down earlier his debased cutback recovered Mbappe to finish.

The 2nd enactment is imposing stricter positional subject connected Mbappe himself — not banning him from the wide area, but making it wide that his superior determination indispensable beryllium central, wherever helium volition person the astir productive positions to decorativeness oregon to make abstraction for the wide players to exploit.

The 3rd enactment — and the slightest apt for reasons that widen beyond tactics — is starting 1 of Mbappe oregon Vinicius Junior from the bench. Both players' wider power connected the squad, their commercialized profiles and the interior dynamics of a dressing country containing 2 of the astir salient names successful planetary shot each marque that benignant of enactment determination an highly hard 1 to prolong implicit a season.

One happening is certain: it falls to Mourinho to find the answer. Deflecting the question by criticising referees, arsenic the Portuguese brag has done astatine assorted points this campaign, volition not bring the trophies that Real Madrid expect.