“I’m sure that after the break, with two weeks of training, he’ll be in better shape,” Xabi Alonso said of Jude Bellingham before the international window. “He’s going to be crucial in the period coming up in October. The days ahead will give us the time Jude missed during preseason because of his surgery, and we’ve got a packed schedule in store.”
With Bellingham returning to the starting XI, Alonso is unveiling his new-look Real Madrid - a team built around three dazzling stars: Kylian Mbappé, Bellingham, and Vinícius Júnior. Together, they boast a combined market value of €510 million (€180m each for Mbappé and Bellingham, €150m for Vinicius). That trio alone accounts for more than a third of the squad’s total valuation (€1.4 billion), and they form the cornerstone of the club’s long-term project.
This new Madrid had a rocky debut in the derby (a 5-2 loss), the lone blemish on an otherwise strong season. Now, with Bellingham ready to reclaim his place in the lineup once and for all, Alonso still has to fine-tune his team. The Coliseum will be a tough first test post-derby, and Juventus will follow - the final hurdle before the season’s biggest stage: El Clásico.
Xabi Alonso’s Real balancing act
Alonso’s challenge is clear: find balance with all three stars on the pitch. Carlo Ancelotti struggled with that last season, when Madrid conceded far too many goals - 84 in 68 matches, an average of 1.24 per game. That was a sharp uptick from the previous five seasons, when the team had consistently allowed fewer than one goal per match.
More concerning is the stat line when Mbappé, Bellingham and Vinicius all started together. In 30 matches, Madrid conceded 48 goals - 1.6 per game - well above even last season’s poor average. That elite trio still has one major box left to check: defensive balance.
Madrid won just 17 of those 30 games, drew three, and lost ten - including a whole host of defeats against top-tier opponents: Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup, all three Clásicos (two in LaLiga, one in the Supercopa), both Champions League legs against Arsenal, and the second leg of the European Madrid derby.
It’s a puzzling trend - so many losses against elite teams - especially considering the individual brilliance of the trio last season. Mbappé finished with 44 goals and five assists, Vinicius added 22 goals and 19 assists, and Bellingham chipped in 15 goals and 15 assists. That’s 81 goals and 39 assists between them. Yet in matches where all three started, Madrid’s only wins against a top side came against a disappointing Manchester City in their two-legged Champions League tie.
A tactical puzzle
Alonso has plenty of tactical options to fit Bellingham into his system. In the derby, he went with a 4-2-3-1 - a formation that showed both promise and flaws. On the bright side, there was clear chemistry between Arda Güler and Mbappé when the Turkish playmaker was deployed higher up the pitch. “Sometimes we talk, other times we just understand each other with a look,” Güler recently told L’Équipe.
But the downside was just as evident: without Güler alongside Aurélien Tchouaméni in midfield, Madrid lost control in the center of the park - a key factor in the painful defeat and the five goals conceded.
Against Getafe, the picture will still be incomplete due to the key absence of Dean Huijsen. Until Dani Carvajal returns - expected before El Clásico - Fede Valverde will have to fill in at right back. But by the time Barcelona comes around, Alonso should finally have his full-strength XI available. That’s when the real answers will emerge.
With Mbappé, Bellingham and Vinicius locked into the front line, only three more spots remain from midfield forward - assuming a back four. So far, Tchouaméni looks untouchable. He’s started nine of ten matches and ranks third in minutes played behind Thibaut Courtois and Mbappé.
That leaves two spots for a crowded field: Valverde, Güler, Franco Mastantuono, Dani Ceballos, Rodrygo Goes and Brahim Díaz. Based on recent seasons, Valverde seems to have a firm grip on one of those places.
One spot, two contenders
That narrows it down to one final spot — and two prime contenders: Güler and Mastantuono. Güler has started nine matches and is arguably the breakout star of the season, with four goals and six assists (four of them to Mbappé). Mastantuono, meanwhile, has started seven games and embodies the “competitive DNA” Alonso constantly preaches. He also came with a hefty €63.2 million price tag.
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