Real Madrid have been stumbling over the line in the latter stages of the Champions League with striker Karim Benzema out of action through injury. They lost on Tuesday to Juventus in Turin, and now have to face a tricky test ahead of the second leg when they host Valencia in La Liga this weekend.
Real manager Carlo Ancelotti has not settled on who will occupy the centre-forward role in Benzema’s absence, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Javier Hernandez having played through the middle at times. But should the Real Madrid boss have planned for this last summer?
The Spanish La Liga side sold the likes of Gonzalo Higuain and Alvaro Morata without effectively replacing them should Benzema pick up an injury. Considering they went the entire season with only Javier Hernandez as the Frenchman’s cover in attack, it is incredible they were not punished sooner.
They certainly missed the threat down the middle that Benzema provides, and Ancelotti apparently does not trust Hernandez in the big games, so why is he even there?
Real Madrid are at risk of elimination following their defeat in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, and they can hardly use Benzema’s absence as an excuse, given it was their choice to spend around £120M on new recruits who do not play as centre-forwards while signing on loan a striker who could not cement his place at Manchester United.
It is perhaps such actions in the transfer market that could not only cost Real Madrid the La Liga and the Champions League titles this season, but the job of Ancelotti in the summer. Zinedine Zidane is already being lined up, and the hierarchy are hardly going to need an excuse to axe the Italian if Real end the season trophyless.
Last summer, many were questioning when Real would sign another striker after letting Morata leave, but Hernandez was a late arrival, and one who unlikely to stay past his loan deal this summer. There are a number of players available, many of whom would jump at the opportunity of playing at the Santiago Bernabeu. Money certainly is not an issue either, so there is really no excuse as to why Los Blancos did not sign a suitable player to cover for Benzema to ensure they had enough in attack in his absence.
With Cristiano Ronaldo in the side, Real are surely going to score goals, but their build-up play suffers if they do not have a centre-forward who brings others into play as well as Benzema does. It could prove costly in the coming weeks though Benzema’s expected return could signal positive things to come for Real.
Are Real Madrid paying the price for not signing a talented second striker?
