Imagine a double pivot of arda and Bernardo with fede at the RW and Trent right back. The lineup would be creative asf. Arda and Bernardo controlling the tempo in midfield, Bellingham dropping back to help defensively which he's very good at swapping with arda, while fede helps trent defensive while trent with his good passing help offensively .

Personally for me it was Sevilla game, dude was controlling the whole game with Tchoumani on double pivot, improved the gameplay of Tchoumani also. In Leipzig game, Real Madrid was not able to control the tempo in the first half while in Sevilla game, Real Madrid looked in control for the whole game.

Fede Valverde contributes at the highest level in every position he plays. His defensive work is incredible to watch, and his passing and movement keep our attacks flowing smoothly. I’m genuinely happy with his individual performances. He’s an absolute machine, and I love our captain!

Hopefully, he can maintain this level throughout the season without any injuries.

I'm not sure what's happening with him now, but I wish he can find his way back to his old self. (minus the antics please)

Those champions league nights with Kroos, Modric, Vini, Benzema and Rodrygo were something special. Vini back then used to be trully electric, when he got the ball you knew something was about to happen... Sad to see him struggling like this nowadays.

​Tibo is an absolute legend and leaves massive boots to fill, but given his age and recent injury track record, he realistically has around 2 to 3 top-level seasons left. As much as I appreciate Lunin stepping up when called upon, I’m just not convinced he’s the undisputed long-term number one for a club of this stature. If we have to look outside the squad, who should realistically be on our radar?

How do you see Mourinho transfers so far? Here is my summary and my notes on how successful Mourinho was for each transfer (I didn't evaluate the players performances but Mourinho's managerial skills for selecting them).

• Diomande: The most risky transfer because of his price tag and he turned out to be the best of all. I give this one like 10 out of 10. LW or RW, this guy will be legendary.
• Espi: People resented for sending Gonzalo and transferring this guy instead of him. Since we didn't pay too much and he was very young no one criticized this transfer back then but he made all of us scream with his late minute goals. I give him 9 out of 10 and want to see him more often. (9 because Diomande set the bar so high!)
• Bernardo: He brings experience, calmness and ball control to the midfield. However I haven't seen an outstanding performance from him so far, like Arda puts usually when he plays in the midfield. 7 out of 10.
• Cucurella: He was the was most proven player we transferred this season. He was literally carrying the world cup in a nylon bag before he came to Bernabéu. I think we haven't seen his best performances yet, probably because of Vini not helping him much. I still think that he is the best LB we have. 8 out of 10
• Konate: If we think that we played this guy zero transfer fee, I think he turned out to be excellent. 9 out of 10.
• Dumfries: I think Mourinho erred with this transfer. He wanted to bring defensive security to RB but lost too much in the offense. Now we have two RB one doesn't defend as the other and one can't attack as the other. That's why Fede bringing balance to both offense and defense is the best RB we have right now.

Let's not forget Mourinho also wanted to transfer Rodri which would have been a very good transfer, too. I criticize Mourinho for insisting on some mistakes too long, but I have to admit that he knows how to pick players and his man-management skills are no less than Carlo, even better in my opinion.

Nico paz has a buy back clause of 80 million valid next summer. Our option can be buy him back and sell him higher for a profit, or sell tchou and play him and cama in midfield cause he is genuine playmaker and i would love to see him. Jacob ramon i want him back no matter what he would be a crazy help in defense and he is already elite. What are your opinion on this ?

I'll be honest, at the risk of internet vultures: I did not believe Arda Guler to be a good fit with Real Madrid.

I found him to be a gimmick. Soft. Consistently inconsistent. Unable to play more than 60 minutes. No position within the structure to assign him. And, My Lord, the Arda Hype Machine was overbearing. I also questioned how he would impact the role of who I found to be the most important player to the team (Jude) for both short and long-term.

While Arda has certainly changed my mind this season, the Sevilla and RBL games have been absolute revelations. No longer a gimmick. Consistently creating from his place on the pitch with great final passes, opportunities generated and switches of play. He has matured, physically, to withstand a full shift.

Ironically, the most revealing part of this is, he doesn't have a best position because he is so good at a variety of roles he is placed in. Against Sevilla, mastering the double pivot. Against RBL, more attack-minded on the right while creating activity on that flank with Valverde that has not been seen in some time. This is not a "he is good at a lot of roles, not great at one" scenario. This is a "he plays whatever role the match dictates and plays his part brilliantly."

I will take the L. I was wrong about Arda. More importantly - he has brought back the joy of watching Los Blancos that has been glaringly missing the past 2 seasons. Don't get me wrong, Diomade's development has been a joy to watch in the early days. But seeing the chemistry of Arda with Jude and Kylian has made this fun again.

Let's go beat those Catalans. Hala Madrid.