Real Madrid is at a crucial time in the 2024/25 season, where historical ambition, the pressure of its followers and a series of challenges are intertwined, especially due to injuries. We will deepen the situation, analyzing the absences, the strategy in competitions (Champions League, Copa del Rey and LaLiga), as well as the physical and mental impact on players. We will also consider the weight of the club history and the expectations of the hobby, to determine whether prioritizing the Champions is a calculated risk or a risky move.
1. Current context: the casualties and their impact
Real Madrid has faced a tough battle against injuries this season, a factor that has affected its performance in all competitions. Key players such as Thibaut Courtois (with discomfort after the international pavilion), Éder Militão and Dani Carvajal (who deal with long-term injuries), as well as Dani Ceballos and Ferland Mendy, are either out or in the process of recovery. In addition, others like Andriy Lunin have had recent muscle problems. The defense has become a real puzzle for Carlo Ancelotti, as players like Aurélien Tchouaméni, Fede Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga have had to assume defensive roles of emergency, which has affected their performance in the center of the field.
These absences have left the team with an unbalanced template, with a notable lack of depth in key positions. For example, the goalkeeper has been vulnerable, which led Ancelotti to debut a 19-year-old canteran, Fran González, in a recent match. In the attack, although figures such as Vinícius Júnior, Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham still make the difference, Rodrygo’s inconsistency and the lack of a solid B plan from the bench limit tactical options. This situation reduces the team’s ability to compete to the highest level on three fronts at a time, especially in a Champions League that demands enormous physical and mental effort.
2. The Champions League: an impossible dream or the DNA of Madrid?
The Champions League is the tournament that really defines Real Madrid. With 15 titles in its existence, the club has an almost magical connection with this competition, and its fans value it more than any other trophy. However, the current situation generates uncertainty as to whether the team has the resources to fight for it. Let’s imagine that Madrid has reached quarter finals (as suggested by recent clashes against the Arsenal). 80% of the chances of elimination means that you face a very higher rival or that you have a considerable deficit after the one-way party, which would make the one-way trip quite complicated.
Reasons for risking in the Champions League:
- History and epic: Madrid is known for impossible dating, such as those of 2022 against PSG, Chelsea and Manchester City. The fans and players believe in Bernabéu’s “scenic fear” and the ability of their stars to decide games. Players like Vinícius, Mbappé and Bellingham can change the course of an elimination in a single moment.
- Club Mentality: For Madrid, surrendering in Champions is not an option. The internal pressure (of Florentino Pérez, Ancelotti and the players) and external (a challenge and media) pushes the team to give it all, even against the odds.
- Anamic Impact: A heroic victory in Champions could revitalize the team and the fans, compensating disappointments in other competitions and strengthening confidence for the rest of the season.
Reasons to be cautious:
- Physical wear: The Champions demands a very high level of intensity. Forcing key players like Valverde, Bellingham or Vinícius, who already accumulate many minutes (Valverde with more than 3,400 minutes this season), could cause more injuries or a physical draw that affects LaLiga and the King’s Cup.
- Lack of depth: Without reliable defenses and with a limited bench (players such as Luka Modrić, Brahim Díaz or Endrick do not provide the necessary consistency), a high demand elimination could further expose the equipment’s shortcomings.
- Realistic priorities: If Madrid is virtually eliminated, insisting on an improbable backing could divert resources from more achievable competitions, such as the Copa del Rey, where they are already in the final, or LaLiga, where they still have options to fight the title.
3. King Cup: a tangible opportunity
Madrid faces Barcelona at the end of the Copa del Rey, which is scheduled for April 26, 2025. This is a great time to get a trophy this season, especially after an exciting semi-final against the Real Society that ended 4-4, but it was resolved 5-4 in the global. The King’s Cup is played in a single match, making it an easier competition to handle than a Champions elimination or the long battle in LaLiga.
Advantages of prioritizing the Cup:
- Reduced wear: A single game allows you to better manage rotation and protect key players, avoiding additional injuries.
- Rival known: Although Barcelona is in great shape (invicted in 2025 with nine consecutive victories in LaLiga), Madrid has experience in classics and knows how to compete against them. A victory in the end would be a huge hymic blow.
- Guaranteed Trophy: Winning the Cup would ensure a tangible title, something crucial for a club that does not tolerate blank seasons.
Risks of neglecting it:
- If Madrid turns into the Champions League and loses, it could reach the Copa final with the exhausted or injured players, reducing their options against a Barça on the spot.
- The pressure of the hobby, which values the Champions League, could generate criticism if Ancelotti rotates excessively in the final to preserve players, although this is less likely given the weight of a classic.
4. LaLiga: still in the fight, but with limited margin
In LaLiga, Madrid has taken a considerable step back, with five defeats and 13 points lost since February. In early April, the team has played 30 days and has accumulated 11 games without winning (between draws and defeats). Although it is still in the struggle for the title, the margin of error is very small, especially if the Barcelona continues with its impressive rhythm.
Why focus on LaLiga:
- Long-term consistency: LaLiga rewards regularity, and Madrid still has games to cut distances. Resting players in Champions could allow better performance in the final days.
- Anamic recovery: To straighten the course in LaLiga would restore confidence to a team that has shown mental fragility, as seen in the whistles of hobby to Vinícius for its lack of defensive involvement.
- Resource Management: With a less intense calendar after a hypothetical elimination in Champions, Ancelotti could align its best players more frequently, optimizing the performance of Mbappé, Bellingham and company.
Why not prioritize it exclusively:
- LaLiga is a background race, and Madrid has already yielded too much ground. If the Barça remains intractable, dating could be more complicated than winning a single game (Copa) or a miraculous elimination (Champions).
- The hobby perceives LaLiga as a “lesser prize” compared to the Champions League. A season with only the liguero title, without the Cup or the Champions League, could be considered disappointing.
5. The hobby and weight of history
Real Madrid’s hobby plays a crucial role. His love for the Champions League is indisputable: they prefer to live an epic night in Europe to have a solid season but without continental glory. The chants that resound in the Bernabéu, the euphoria that feels after dating as the Royal Society in the Cup, and the devotion for players like Vinícius (in spite of its ups and downs) reflect a “all or nothing” mentality. However, this same passion can be a double-edged weapon:
- Unqualified support: The hobby will push the team even in the most adverse circumstances, as was seen in the extension against the Royal Society, where the Bernabéu was key to the final 5-4.
- Implacable Pressure: The whistles on Vinícius for punctual errors show that patience has limits. If Madrid turns into the Champions League and fails, the hobby could turn against Ancelotti or the players, affecting the morals for the Cup and LaLiga.
6. Ancelotti’s strategy: to suck everything or choose battles?
Carlo Ancelotti, known for his pragmatism, faces one of the greatest challenges of his career. His philosophy has always been to build from defense, trusting that offensive stars decide the parties. However, the injuries have destroyed their defensive plan (31 goals fit in 30 days of LaLiga, compared to 26 throughout the last season), and their bench does not offer reliable solutions. The rotations, such as those carried out against the Royal Society or Valencia, have not worked, and the mental wear of the equipment is evident after 51 matches contested until April.
Recent tactical errors:
- Failed Rotations: Resting Mbappé on the Copa against the Real Society side or aligning players out of position (Tchouaméni in defense) has generated game gaps.
- Lack of Revulsants: Unlike other years, players such as Endrick or Arda Güler have not contributed enough from the bench, limiting change options.
- Star unit: Vinícius’ irregularity (two goals in nine games) and Rodrygo (a goal in 16 games) puts too much pressure on Mbappé and Bellingham, who can’t always solve alone.
Strategic options:
- Go for the Champions: To force the headlines in the elimination, accepting the risk of injury, to look for a historical dating. This would involve aligning Valverde, Bellingham, Vinícius and Mbappé to 100%, even if they are physically bound.
- Manage efforts: Rotar in the Champions League match (if the score is almost lost) to get fresh to the Cup final and recover land in LaLiga. This could disappoint the hobby, but it would preserve the physicist of the players.
- Risky balance: Try to compete on the three fronts with partial rotations, relying on stars to make the difference in key moments. This option is the most ambitious, but also the one that most exposes the team to stay without anything.
7. Critical analysis: what should Madrid do?
From a rational point of view, it seems that prioritizing the King’s Cup and LaLiga is the most logical decision. The final of the Cup is an immediate and achievable goal, while LaLiga represents a long-term opportunity for redemption. Trying to go back in Champions, with 80% chance of failure, could put at risk the physical condition of the players and leave them powerless for the other fronts. An injury more than one headline, such as Bellingham or Mbappé, would be a devastating blow.
However, Real Madrid is not guided only by logic. His essence is deeply connected with the Champions League, and surrendering in Europe would be like betraying his DNA. Both the fans and the club prefer to risk everything before accepting defeat without fighting. An ideal scenario would be to manage efforts in the next Champions match, using players such as Modrić, Brahim or Güler to avoid wear of the headlines, and then throw themselves with everything in the Cup and LaLiga. But if Ancelotti decides to bet on the European epic, he must be prepared to assume that the cost can be high.
Optimistic Scenario: Madrid achieves a miraculous backing in Champions, driven by Vinícius and Mbappé, and comes with confidence to the final of the Cup. LaLiga is complicated, but a European title could compensate for any disappointment in the domestic sphere. Realistic Scenario: Madrid falls in Champions after a titanic effort, gets exhausted at the end of the Cup and loses before the Barça. In LaLiga, the lack of freshness prevents him from going back, and the season ends with criticisms of Ancelotti. Pessimist Scenario: The lesions multiply in Champions, the team is eliminated and demolished in a dynamic way, losing the final of the Cup and staying behind in LaLiga. The season ends in a fiasco.
8. Conclusion: the dilemma of Madrid
Real Madrid is facing a crossroads that could mark its season: should it cling to its glorious legacy in the Champions League or accept the limitations of a merciful template and focus on more achievable trophies? The logic could indicate that it is best to concentrate on the Copa del Rey and LaLiga, but the true heart of madridismo always beats for the Champions League. Ancelotti will have to find an almost impossible balance: motivate his players to achieve the European feat without neglecting the other competitions. The history of Madrid is full of “y si” and “but”, and although risking wanting to cover it all can lead to not getting anything, it is also true that this club has forged its legend challenging the odds. The hobby, with its unwavering passion, will continue to dream of the 16th Champions League, although the cost of that dream could be too high this time.
