According to a source, Carlo Ancelotti has “identified the problem player” at Real Madrid and feels that he is the primary cause of their failure this season.
Real Madrid had an incredible season last year, winning both the La Liga and the Champions League.
After defeating Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium, they won their 15th European trophy and surpassed bitter rivals Barcelona by 10 points to take the top spot in the league.
However, Real Madrid isn’t getting any better this season even with the sensational addition of Kylian Mbappe, who joined the team on a free transfer in the summer.
Despite having eight goals this season in all competitions, Mbappe’s team sits behind Barcelona in La Liga.
And after losing their first game, they are off to a rough start in defending their Champions League championship.
Ancelotti thinks Mbappe needs to work on his defensive skills
Mbappe’s lack of work out of possession has been cited by Ancelotti as a major problem for his team, according to Spanish publication Relevo.
After losing to Lille and Barcelona, Ancelotti tried to figure out why the team’s performance has drastically declined from the previous campaign.
According to the article, Mbappe is the problem because he isn’t doing enough defensive work. He only logged eight kilometres during Real Madrid’s humiliating 4-0 loss in the El Clasico last month.
It is tough to get the ball back because of the imbalance created by his lack of defensive effort up front, which affects the entire squad.
Jude Bellingham is one of the main victims of the present team’s tactical mismatch, according to the report.
The Frenchman’s role of “rolling up his sleeve” has caused a “certain annoyance” among the team.
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In order to address the imbalance, the players engaged in heated discussions and disputes in the centre of the field during games against Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund, where they were behind at halftime.
Prior to this week’s games against AC Milan and Osasuna, Ancelotti will be looking to resolve his team’s organisational issues.
