Real Madrid’s £? 537m bench highlights Mourinho’s selection dilemma

“Looking at the substitutes’ bench, everyone was there apart from the injured players, and all I could see was quality.” That was Jose Mourinho’s assessment after Real Madrid’s win over Rayo Vallecano, as the manager gradually welcomes more players back into contention.

The depth available to Mourinho also brings difficult decisions over who starts and who remains among the substitutes. To give Diomande his first start, the Portuguese coach left Arda Guler on the bench, despite the Turkey international impressing during his 23-minute appearance.

“Guler plays a lot when he is on the pitch, but I am 100% certain that if Diomande had not started, the first question would have been: when will Diomande play?” Mourinho said.

According to a report by AS, Real Madrid had 12 players waiting for their opportunity against Rayo Vallecano, with a combined market value of 537m euros, based on figures from Transfermarkt.

Guler alone is valued at 90m euros, placing him among the 25 most valuable players in the world. His market value is higher than that of the entire Rayo Vallecano squad, which is estimated at 86.85m euros.

It is also greater than the squad values of five other La Liga clubs: Malaga, Alaves, Elche, Osasuna and Levante.

Guler was joined on the bench by Aurelien Tchouameni, valued at 70m euros, while Huijsen, Alexander-Arnold and World Cup winner Cucurella were each valued at 60m euros.

Eduardo Camavinga’s value is put at 50m euros, with Endrick valued at 40m euros and Brahim Diaz at 35m euros. Carlos Espe, Thiago Pitarch and Raul Asencio were each listed at 20m euros, while Andriy Lunin was valued at 12m euros.

Only 19 clubs worldwide have squads worth more than the 537m euros represented by Real Madrid’s 12 substitutes. In Spain, only Barcelona, whose squad is valued at 1.2656bn euros, and Atletico Madrid, valued at 679.7m euros, rank above that figure.

Villarreal, the fourth-most valuable squad in La Liga, have a combined market value of 331.6m euros.

Mourinho has used 19 players so far this season. Following Diomande’s first start, 17 players have now been named in Real Madrid’s starting XI across the opening six matches.

The only two players yet to start a match are Tchouameni, who is working to regain full fitness and match rhythm after injury, and Carlos Espe.

Lunin, Asencio and Endrick are still waiting to make their first appearances. The latter two have also had injury problems, while Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy and Rodrygo remain on the injured list.