Oviedo - Real Madrid: Mbappe inherits the number 10, but what about number 8?

24/08/2025 08:29:00 ScoreStream

Everyone knows the two main challenges Real Madrid faces this season, right after their narrow victory over Osasuna last weekend, are their dependence on Kylian Mbappe and the absence of a replacement for the pair Toni Kroos - Luka Modric.

For a squad that has succeeded over a decade thanks to the two best midfielders of their generation (Kroos-Modric), losing them is a loss that is very hard to make up for. Additionally, considering coach Xabi Alonso’s past playing position, a midfielder like Kroos is irreplaceable by anyone.

Among those remaining—Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde, Tchouameni, Brahim Diaz, Camavinga, Arda Guler—none possess the footballing qualities similar to the German midfielder.

Below are the technical statistics from last weekend’s La Liga opener at Bernabeu, highlighting the tough challenge the 44-year-old coach faces. The player with the most touches was left-back Alvaro Carreras with 123, who also led in touches inside the box with 61, carried the ball forward 26 times, and ranked second in passes into the final third with 26 attempts.

The second most touches were by center-back Dean Huijsen with 114, who made 28 forward passes, created 2 chances, and had the highest danger index of 1.755 in the match. These defenders surpassed the passing numbers of Real’s midfielders that day: Tchouameni, Valverde, Guler, and Brahim Diaz.

This is unusual for a team where Toni Kroos once dominated all these statistics. The last match used as a benchmark for the German legend was the 2024 Champions League win over Bayern Munich.

Valverde wears the number 8 shirt, but he cannot produce the same impact as Toni Kroos.

He had the most touches with 98, the highest pass accuracy at 97%, completed the most passes in the final third (16), made the most ball recoveries (7), interceptions (4), created the most chances (3), and had the most tackles (2). Kroos not only excelled in his number 8 role but also performed duties of Modric, Tchouameni, Camavinga, and Bellingham.

"They no longer produce players like Kroos," said right-back Dani Carvajal. "There will be players who come close to his level, but Toni is unique." Even when the German midfielder tried to establish Valverde as his replacement by giving the Uruguayan the number 8 jersey in Real’s last match, it did not guarantee the replacement was complete.

Last season’s failure proved how difficult this is, and it will likely repeat similarly this season unless Xabi finds an accurate solution from the current players.

The 44-year-old coach knows the value of a player like Kroos very well, so during the summer he tried to put Arda Guler in a similar position, but the Turkish midfielder did not even deserve to appear in the technical stats after the win against Osasuna.

Jude Bellingham enjoys similar respect as Kroos but last season he played more as a number 10, a left-sided midfielder, and was among the few players with over 3,000 touches across all competitions. However, the problem is that the English midfielder lost the ball more frequently, up to 16%, higher than anyone else among Kroos, Modric, Camavinga, or Tchouameni. Number 5 was also the only one in this group with a pass accuracy below 90% (89.5).

Kroos was not known for his defensive skills but rarely lost possession. His low turnover rate, 8.6% across all competitions, is comparable to Tchouameni’s 9.4%. Therefore, finding someone to fill the number 8 role is even more challenging as Xabi wants his ball-control philosophy to function effectively.

Nhat Minh

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