Real Madrid’s ruthless attack masks growing defensive concerns in uneven start

Real Madrid have shown two contrasting sides at the start of the season, combining an intimidating attack with defensive lapses and individual errors that have become increasingly difficult to ignore.

The Spanish newspaper AS described Jose Mourinho’s side as capable of producing either a full-scale storm or a spell of heavy tropical rain that opponents can still withstand. The comparison reflects a team with formidable attacking power, but one that can lose its defensive shape at crucial moments.

Real Madrid have looked particularly strong at the Santiago Bernabeu, where they average 10 shots on target and concede only two per match. Away from home, however, their performance has been far less convincing. They concede twice as many shots as they do in their own stadium, averaging four per game.

The difference is not limited to the number of chances created. Real Madrid scored four goals against both Real Sociedad and Malaga, securing emphatic victories that appeared to come comfortably and provided a major boost to their confidence. Those matches developed into goal-filled celebrations, with the attack operating at full force.

Away from home, the team’s control has been less evident. Their opening league match at Cornella-El Prat proved particularly difficult, as their superiority did not translate into the same authority on the pitch against Espanyol. Real Madrid eventually won, but had to work hard for the result.

They managed seven shots on target in that match, around one-third fewer than their home average, and scored six goals fewer than they had in their earlier attacking displays. Their effectiveness in front of goal has also dropped on the road, most notably when they failed to score at La Cartuja.

That blank was an unusual occurrence for Real Madrid. Before it, they had failed to find the net in only one of their previous 24 matches the clasico against Barcelona on 10 May.

Defensive lapses raise questions

The other half of Real Madrid’s split personality has been visible in a series of avoidable defensive mistakes. These have not been isolated problems involving only the back four; instead, they have involved the team as a whole losing concentration or coordination.

The goal conceded against Espanyol came after poor communication between Federico Valverde, who carried the greatest responsibility, and the defence while Calatrava was being marked.

Against Real Sociedad, the goal resulted from a sequence of errors that lacked the decisive intervention needed to stop a counter-attack. Ibrahima Konate and Alvaro Carreras were both involved in that failure to halt the move. The goal conceded at La Cartuja the following day came after Valverde lost his man when the ball rebounded from a corner.

Those incidents do not necessarily point to a tactical defect or suggest that the team has been poorly constructed. They are individual errors that can be overlooked when Real Madrid are winning by wide margins. Their impact becomes much greater, though, when matches are decided by a single goal or a narrow margin.

That is why the lapses are a concern ahead of fixtures in which there will be little room for mistakes. A similar error in a tighter contest could cost Real Madrid the match.

The squad remains a work in progress. Mourinho acknowledged as much during pre-season with a sardonic assessment that his team effectively had three versions: “fresh, tired and very tired”.

The most exhausted version has naturally disappeared as the players moved beyond their preparations and began to benefit from their physical work. Yet signs of fatigue remain, particularly in certain players. Jude Bellingham is the clearest example after joining pre-season late because of his involvement with England at the World Cup.

Bellingham’s energy begins to fade from about the 70th minute, inevitably reducing the speed at which the team functions. That is not yet a reason for alarm, but it underlines that Mourinho’s project has not reached its peak.

Real Madrid remain a fearsome attacking machine capable of creating a huge number of chances. However, the contrast between their four-goal output at the Santiago Bernabeu, their two-goal return away from home and their failure to score at La Cartuja shows that the machine still needs tightening. Their attacking threat is clear, but the team is not yet complete.