Exploring One of Real Madrid’s Biggest Problems Compared to Barcelona

The Catalans are on pace to go back-to-back in La Liga while Los Blancos eye a trophyless season.

Barcelona are set to deny Real Madrid the La Liga title for the second consecutive season. | Javier Borrego/Europa Press/Maria Gracia Jimenez/Soccrates/Oscar J. Barroso/Europa Press/Getty Images

What was once shaping up to be a photo-finish La Liga title race between Barcelona and Real Madrid is now nothing more than a formality in the final two months of the season.

It’s no coincidence the Catalans sit nine points clear of their bitter rivals. Despite each team’s defensive shortcomings, the defending champions have the better midfield, manager and bench. But perhaps the biggest gap between the two sides lies in goalscoring.

Through 31 league games in 2025–26, Barcelona have found the back of the net 84 times compared to Real Madrid’s 65. The numbers are reminiscent of last season, when Hansi Flick’s men scored 102 goals in their La Liga-winning campaign, while runners-up Real Madrid only managed 78.

The gap in production seems improbable given the firepower lining Los Blancos’ attack. Yet the reality is the 15-time European champions have a sputtering output up top—a problem Barcelona rarely has to worry about.

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Real Madrid Is the Kylian Mbappé Show for Better or Worse

Kylian Mbappé leads Real Madrid in scoring this season. | Jose Jordan/AFP/Getty Images

Paris Saint-Germain boss Luis Enrique said it best last season: “I’d rather have four players who score 12 goals each than one player who scores 40 goals.”

The Spaniard’s comments were a not-so-subtle dig at Kylian Mbappé, who left Paris to join Real Madrid ahead of the 2024–25 season. The loss only benefited PSG, who went on to claim their first-ever Champions League title, along with three other honors.

Los Blancos, meanwhile, got the full Mbappé experience that carried forward into his sophomore season. The Frenchman leads the team—and the league—with 23 goals in La Liga, but there is a significant drop below him in Real Madrid’s scoring charts.

Pos.	Player	League Goals
1	Kylian Mbappé	23
2	Vinicius Junior	11
3	Federico Valverde	5
4	Jude Bellingham	4
5	Arda Güler	4

Vinicius Junior is the only other player even close with 11 goals, and six came in the last two months. It takes combining the output of Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham and Arda Güler to tally another doubt-digit haul.

The lopsided production means one thing: in games where Mbappé or Vinicius Jr don’t get on the scoresheet, Real Madrid do not have the additional scoring necessary to get over the line. The problems only amplify when the team concedes and therefore needs to find the back of the net multiple times to collect three points.

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Los Blancos’ Last Four La Liga Blunders

Álvaro Arbeloa has failed to find a solution to Real Madrid’s persistent woes. | Cristian Trujillo/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

• Osasuna 2–1 Real Madrid (15 shots, five on target—33.3%)
• Real Madrid 0–1 Getafe (18 shots, seven on target—38.8%)
• Mallorca 2–1 Real Madrid (15 shots, six on target—40%)
• Real Madrid 1–1 Girona (22 shots, nine on target—40.9%)

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You can’t even blame the team’s defense—Real Madrid have only conceded 29 goals in La Liga this season, the fewest in the league. Even when they let in two goals, a team with some of the best goalscorers in the world should be able to bail their backline out.

Except Álvaro Arbeloa’s men routinely fail to rally enough goals to win games against far inferior opponents. Their attack is one-dimensional, focused far too much on getting Mbappé the ball instead of spreading it across the pitch and getting other players involved.

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Barcelona Spread the Wealth—A Foreign Concept at Real Madrid

Raphinha (left) and Lamine Yamal have led Barcelona to a mighty gap atop the table. | Pablo Rodriguez/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

Barcelona’s scoring is much more balanced among the big names in Flick’s squad. When Lamine Yamal and Raphinha are having an off night, they can turn to Robert Lewandowski or Ferran Torres to produce some magic in the final third.

Opposing defenses have to worry about marking more than just one player. If they put all their efforts into locking down Yamal, then the space is open for Raphinha or Torres or even Olmo to exploit.

Pos.	Player	League Goals
1	Lamine Yamal	15
2	Ferran Torres	14
3	Robert Lewandowski	12
4	Raphinha	11
5	Dani Olmo	7

Four players have double-digit goals for the defending Spanish champions. The production of Yamal, Torres, Lewandowski and Raphinha alone is 52 league goals, and Olmo’s additional seven tallies to 59 goals between the team’s top five scorers.

That means there are still 25 goals unaccounted for, which come from the depth in Flick’s squad. The team’s relentless possession fuels their free-flowing attack, allowing even forgotten stars to get involved in the action.

So even when Barcelona concede multiple goals, they still have the attacking prowess to snag three points, which has been the difference in the La Liga title race this season.

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Injuries Did Real Madrid No Favors

Jude Bellingham missed nearly two months with a hamstring injury. | Federico Titone/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

It’s not fair to dissect Real Madrid’s scoring woes without mentioning the players who were missing from action. Bellingham, the team’s best playmaker and secondary scorer, was out for over 100 cumulative days due to a shoulder and hamstring injuries.

Rodrygo, who had finally rediscovered his form and reclaimed his place on the right wing, suffered multiple issues this season, including an ACL injury. Mbappé also missed chunks of time dealing with a nagging knee problem.

A lackluster midfield, void of a deep-lying playmaker and a true orchestrator, doesn’t help matters. Still, the missing faces are no excuse; Los Blancos should have enough talent on the pitch or the bench to get past the likes of Osasuna or Getafe.

But the team’s lack of clinical finishing, forward passing and creativity in the final third make scoring goals nearly impossible against disciplined defenses. In turn, claiming the Spanish crown from Barcelona, who are experts in all three categories, was only ever a dream for Real Madrid.

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