Real Madrid’s Biggest Problems Laid Bare at the 2026 World Cup
Even though Real Madrid have not played a second of soccer in two months, their deficiencies were still on full display at the 2026 World Cup.
The sport’s grandest spectacle was supposed to be the perfect palate cleanser following Los Blancos’ disastrous 2025–26 season. A shift in focus from the trophyless campaign that tore apart a once tight-knit dressing room is exactly what the team and fans needed this summer.
Except the World Cup quickly became a magnifying glass for all the problems weighing down the 15-time European champions. Midfield woes, underperforming superstars and lackluster signings felt like the same old record scratch blasting at the Bernabéu over the last two years.
Even José Mourinho’s arrival to Valdebebas and the start of preseason could not distract from the club’s glaring problems taking over the world stage—and there doesn’t seem to be any solutions coming.
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Midfield Deficiencies Still Raging
For the last two years, Real Madrid have been desperate for a deep-lying playmaker to replace the hole left by Toni Kroos and then Luka Modrić. Instead, the club prioritized signing flashy new forwards and unproven defenders, leaving the midfield largely untended.
Aurélien Tchouaméni and Federico Valverde, whose locker room confrontation ended with the latter going to the hospital in May, were left to command the middle of the park, while Jude Bellingham tried to fill in gaps as opposed to playing as a No. 10, where he is at his best.
As a result, Los Blancos struggled to break down low blocks, routinely failed to score more than one goal and took pride in backward passes. Tchouaméni, in particular, simply does not have the profile to be the orchestrator that Kroos was, a fact he confirmed in France’s World Cup exit this summer.
The midfielder is never going to be a scintillating link between the defense and the attack. Tchouaméni is too slow in his decision-making, does not have the passing range to break lines and lacks the vision to kick-start an attack. His weaknesses were laid bare for the world to see against Spain’s midfield duo of Rodri and Fabián Ruiz.
It’s not a coincidence that Real Madrid’s last Champions League title came with the Frenchman playing as an anchor while Kroos was the maestro in front of him. Yet the club has once again prioritized other signings, overlooking the one reinforcement it needs most to contend for silverware.
Summer Signings Produce a Mixed Bag
Despite not signing an elite midfielder, Real Madrid have been active in the summer transfer market. As the World Cup unfolded, they signed Marc Cucurella, Ibrahima Konaté, Bernardo Silva and Denzel Dumfries.
Cucurella and Dumfries, the two players who did not come for free, put together impressive World Cup showings. The left back has been dribbled past zero times in the knockout stage, and most recently made Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembélé look like lost children in the semifinals.
Dumfries, meanwhile, played every second for the Netherlands and racked up two assists before his country fell in the round of 32. The fullbacks will certainly elevate two problem positions at Real Madrid, even if the Dutchman settles for second best behind Trent Alexander-Arnold.
That’s where the good news ends. Konaté, the team’s much-needed center back reinforcement, played just 14 minutes for France this summer, and that one appearance came when his side was already up 3–1 against Norway in the group stage.
The former Liverpool man could not even get minutes in place of the injured William Saliba. Didier Deschamps trusted Maxence Lacroix over Konaté, which is about all that needs to be said.
Then there’s Silva, who looked every bit his age for Portugal. The 31-year-old got the nod in his country’s World Cup opener against DR Congo, was largely a passenger and then got hooked at halftime. He then did not start another match, and only played more than 15 minutes once before the Seleção das Quinas crashed out in the round of 16.
It’s not exactly a ringing endorsement for Los Blancos’ 2026–27 season that their two biggest problem areas—midfield and center back—have signings that barely saw the pitch at the World Cup.
Superstars Faltering ... Again
Far too often have Real Madrid’s best players failed to produce in the big moments over the last two seasons. To make matters worse, some of the biggest names at the biggest club took their domestic struggles to the international stage.
For all Kylian Mbappé’s goalscoring at the World Cup this summer, he was held utterly quiet against Spain in the semifinals. With a trip to the final on the line, the Frenchman did not even register a shot on target and hardly tested La Roja’s backline.
His fellow countryman Tchouaméni was just as disappointing in the semifinals, while Eduardo Camavinga did not even earn a place in Deschamps’s squad.
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Speaking of midfielders, Valverde will want to forget the last two months—three, really—as quickly as possible. The Uruguayan could not even lead his side out of the group stage; La Celeste failed to pick up a single win after draws with Saudi Arabia and Cabo Verde, before losing to Spain.
Arda Güler faced a similar fate, completely underwhelming for a Türkiye side eliminated in the group stage. The midfielder, an incredible playmaker on his day, did little while his country failed to score in its first two games against Australia and Paraguay. He finally found the back of the net against the U.S. men’s national team, but that was nothing more than a consolation goal in a consolation game.
It does not bode well for Real Madrid that four of their starters, who have come up short time and time again in a white shirt, also could not produce for their respective countries.
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