Just over a week remains for Real Madrid’s first official game of the new season and they will take on Espanyol in their La Liga curtain-raiser.
Ahead of that big clash, however, the club do have one final pre-season friendly scheduled for tomorrow evening, and it will be against FC Schalke.
The past week has been a critical one for Jose Mourinho and Co. as they finally welcomed back the World Cup heroes and completed their squad for the new season.
With Real Madrid’s transfer window also likely done, the manager now has a full-strength dressing room at his disposal and the game against Schalke will be the first of a new era in that sense.
Madrid Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Schalke vs Real Madrid.
The big names return
Real Madrid’s pre-season campaign so far has revolved around academy players, non-internationals and internationals who returned home early after suffering heartbreak at the FIFA World Cup.
The big guns are back. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
While some names like Federico Valverde, Arda Guler and Denzel Dumfries have been available from relatively early in Mourinho’s dynamics, the bulk of the team’s core arrived much later.
Vinicius Jr. and Endrick returned for Real Madrid’s latest friendlies, but other big names including Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham have come back only in recent days.
The duo who made it to the World Cup semifinals returned to training earlier this week, and are in the squad for Real Madrid’s clash against Schalke tomorrow.
All signs point to Mbappe playing some part in Gelsenkirchen in what comes as a massive boost for Mourinho’s plans. After all, the Frenchman is the centrepiece in attack and the team is, quite clearly, built around him.
Also expected to feature is Bellingham. Despite uncertainty over his participation in recent days, word has it that the player is in top physical condition and will indeed be able to slot back in as a starting midfield option for Mourinho.
A debut for Diomande
Yan Diomande arrived in Madrid as a new signing ahead of Real Madrid’s friendly against Ferencvaros, but did not make it to the squad for that clash owing to a lack of match fitness. He was also not called up for the subsequent game vs Deportivo La Coruna.
Diomande set for his debut. (Photo courtesy: Real Madrid official website)
In under a week, however, the player has returned to speed and is now seen to be prepared to put on a Real Madrid shirt for the first time in a game. Needless to say, it will be a momentous occasion.
Diomande’s big-money move this summer made him Real Madrid’s most expensive signing in history, and such a price tag undoubtedly arrives with a certain scale of expectations and a lot of pressure.
The young winger is already said to be impressing in training, and all signs point to him starting against Schalke in the club’s final pre-season friendly. Needless to say, he will be eager to showcase some of his talent before the high-stakes games arrive.
More importantly, it will be interesting to see Diomande’s chemistry with the likes of Mbappe, Bellingham and others, for that could well dictate how the player’s first season at the club will progress.
The new-look defence completed
Real Madrid’s summer transfer window largely revolved around defensive signings, and it has been clear from day one that Jose Mourinho’s focus was on the backline.
The club went all-out in making signings for the defence, bringing in Ibrahima Konate, Denzel Dumfries and Marc Cucurella to Valdebebas in a matter of weeks.
In line for Real Madrid debuts? (Picture credit: X/@realmadrid)
So far, only the Dutch star has made his debut for Real Madrid and has already impressed with his quality and defensive resilience. Konate and Cucurella, however, are yet to make their debuts.
Having returned to the club’s pre-season camp earlier this week, both stars have been called up for the friendly tomorrow and are very likely to receive their debuts in the team’s final pre-season clash.
It will thus be a momentous occasion for both Konate and Cucurella. The former will look to convince the manager of his quality and stake a claim for a starting spot while the latter will look to prove why he is a deserved World Champion and starter for Real Madrid.
At some point in the game, it is very likely that Dumfries, Konate and Cucurella share the field at the back and that Real Madrid see an almost completely new defensive line fielded under the new manager.