Away at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo this Tuesday to face Atalanta, Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid secured a 3-2 victory. Despite several tactical adjustments, the Madrid side, weakened by injuries, remained composed against the impressive Italian team. After the match, several Madrid players did not hesitate to highlight some major talking points and key changes that paid off.
This was one of the big games for Real Madrid at the end of this year. After a series of defeats against skilful teams, including Barça, AC Milan, Liverpool, and Athletic Bilbao, the Merengue team faced the current leaders of Serie A this Tuesday. As part of the sixth matchday of the Champions League, Kylian Mbappé and his teammates were determined to shine against a team unbeaten since late September. Despite some key absences and players like Vinicius and Rodrygo being less than fully fit, Real got the job done.
Ferland Mendy, increasingly undesirable
In this match, Carlo Ancelotti made several changes, including repositioning Aurélien Tchouaméni as a central defender alongside Rüdiger, despite the availability of the young Raúl Asencio. While this decision raised some eyebrows, it proved effective thanks to the Frenchman’s solid performance, despite the unfortunate penalty conceded late in the first half. Another key decision in this match was the inclusion of Fran Garcia at left-back.
Faced with the injury to Ferland Mendy, Carlo Ancelotti had no other choice but to field Fran Garcia, the 25-year-old Spanish full-back, who had already been performing well. Once again, he excelled against Bergamo’s attackers. Like the rest of the Madrid defence, Fran Garcia showed great focus in his defensive duties and intercepted several dangerous balls. After his solid performance, Fran Garcia was praised by several Madrid supporters.
“We should probably start a petition for Fran García. No matter which left-back is targeted next summer, García cannot be the sacrificial lamb. Today’s performance had it all: relentless in attack, solid in defence, and a true fighter for the badge. He has to stay,“ shared one Madrid fan.
Impossible to sideline Mendy for Fran Garcia this season
On social media, many are calling on the coaching staff to stop fielding Ferland Mendy in major matches. Disappointing this season, the 29-year-old French left-back is no longer seen as contributing much to Real Madrid’s games. Rarely present in attack, the former Lyon player is also vulnerable defensively. “After Fran Garcia’s latest performance, the other one (Ferland Mendy) is useless, he needs to be sold as soon as possible,” commented a Madrid observer on X (Twitter) after Tuesday’s 3-2 victory. Like this fan, many are in favour of seeing the Spanish full-back more frequently.
However, it must be said that this season’s packed schedule cannot be handled by just one player. As seen since the start of the campaign, multiple injuries have occurred due to the constant demands on the players, who clearly need rest. Despite some less impressive displays, Mendy remains a key player who cannot simply be discarded. Perhaps with a signing in the coming months or the return of David Alaba, the change desired by Madrid fans could become a reality.
If he recovers from injury by the end of the year or early next year, Ferland Mendy will share the workload with Fran Garcia. For now, Real Madrid’s priority is to regain overall stability and collective solidity to compete effectively in big matches.
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