I don't know what to say, after the athletic match, I was speechless. Isco aside the whole team was terrible the whole year, Ancellotti keeps saying he is going to fix things, and still no reply. After the madrid derby, i thought things might change, but no shit happened. The 4-3-3 needs to stop. We need stop with all the crossing and possession style, we are only a threat at attacking and counter-attacks.

Out of form:-

Ronaldo: He lost his hunger and motivation after the club world cup, hate to say it, but selfish ronaldo is 10X better than now.

Bale: idk, one game he is amazing the second off the drain, yes, he starts to dribble more but hasn't made a huge impact in most games, hope he gets his form back.

Benzema: i feel like benzema only plays excellent when it comes to Barcelona, other than barca, he is just a typical normal striker, he has a weak finish, doesn't shoot a lot and barely dribbles, we need him to at least start to come back to the middle of the pitch to create counter-attacks

Kroos: He hasnt been in form nowadays, still better than bbc but we need his vision, hope modric comes back asap to keep kroos alive

In-form:-

Isco: the lad is just amazing, he has done way more than bbc in almost all the 2015 matches.

Varane: a solid rock at the back, he isn't the best young defender, he is one of the best defenders.

the other players haven't changed much but didn't go off-form at least.

I feel 4-4-2 is our option when modric and james aren't around, we will have a better defence and midfield.

GK: Casillas/Navas

Def: Carvajal----Varane----Pepe------Marcelo

Mid: Bale--Kroos---lucas---isco

Att: Benzema--Ronaldo

we i'd like to hear your thoughts and opinions of this, hope the best for madrid in the up-coming matches.

Hala Madrid!

I dont know if its tactics, anyway here is my point of view of the situation, doesnt pretend that its obvious or plain truth...

Madrid like Ancelotti said is a team of Athleetes, they made time in the start of the season to reach their peak but once they did, they were unstoppable ( 18 pts out of 18 in CL group stage, WC, consecutive wins ), the fact is that rotations were very few and some key injuries of James, Modric and Ramos...

I suspect them to be a bit tired and lack the quality they used to have in midlefield with James and Modric, i always said that Madrid midlefield was there main strenght not the attack, feeders are lacked because the BBC are more confortable in finishing...

Not taking credit from Bilbao and Villareal, they did heroical performences in both games and played with both brain and heart. I guess in CL, actual form would be enough but not in the league...

I actually agree, in 2014, we rarely made substitutions, and when we do, it's always in the last 5 minutes. We didn't think about our backup resources even though we have the quality players, ancellotti needs to give more time for chica, lucas jese and navas, plus less time for BBC, so they can learn a lesson or two, they are waaay too comfortable because they know they won't get subbed, when modric comes, I want isco to stay and bale on the bench, he needs to know that he needs to fight for his place, just like isco, he had the chance when modric was injured and made a good impression every second of it.

Benzema's misplaced passes, Bale's wrong decisions, The most important man Ronaldo's off-form conditions and Ancelotti's choices. Real Madrid tries to put the pressure on the other team after some breaking point and lately because of players' out of form conditions; rest of the time after the breaking point did not look enough to score.
Other than that; the midfield looked insufficient to create chances without the missing key players.
I think Real Madrid could adapt 4-3-1-2 (Isco as the AM) easily more than 4-4-2 . Because changing the style of play directly from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 will definitely affect the team even worse.

Ronaldo should go out sometimes. He's still a human and we have strikers who never play it's give them time to play.

But if Ancelotti traines the players to play wide open after 4-3-3 and if he really thinks he could trust Bale to Benzema,Ronaldo about that; 4-4-2 may end up as a nice collaboration for the team. I am not sure though about this.

They actually played 4-4-2 against barcelona and it turned out pretty good

That was long ago mate. That match was inside Real Madrid's 22 games winning streak. The players were in an excellent shape back then. Now we are talking about how the form conditions of the players changed and how to deal with it. After that Real Madrid also played 4-4-2 against Atletico and lost the game 2-0 . But you can't change the formations whenever you want. That actually affected Real Madrid before, as of late 2014.

I think as good as Casillas was/is, he might not be good enough at this moment. I'd bring in De Gea in the summer.

Also, I don't think there's been anyone that could have challenged Benzema since Higuain left - Morata was terrible at RMA (now doing better at Juve), Jesé is still not there, though he's decent, and Hernandez is just not good enough. Hernandez might do 30m volleys at times, but not consistently. They need some1 who can cover Benzema when he needs rest, or even put him totally out of starting XI. I'd bring in Kane OR Aguero, I think both would join, come proper price for them.

Like Tiki said, there must be some kind of impact in injuries of Haméz, Ramos & Modric. You might now see that it's not all about C.Ronaldo....

This Illarramendi case is weird, the guy was bought for about (32m euros?), and he really doesn't do anything when he's playing, is it about the confidence, because of lack of games?

Like you said, Isco's BRILLIANT.

I guess they'll turn this around, don't forget that the performances of the teams they've lost have been brilliant to see. REALLY looking forward to El Clásico.

The players aren't showing enough passion or determination to win, specially our attacking players (BBC) Isco, Carvajal, and Marcelo have been our biggest threats in attack. It says alot when your fullbacks and center mid are the players creating danger for the opposition. Another big problem I see is we have no impact substitutions... Jese, Chicharito, Silva, and every other Madrid substitute will not change a game 9 times out of 10.

We need James and Modric back, same with Ramos. They are all key players, and give the squad more depth, better attacking, and defensive play, as well as more time to rest for our other players. James, Isco, and Bale can rotate, so can Modric, and Kroos, with Ramos back, our center backs will be able to rotate more as well. Our wing backs aren't a problem, they are passionate and give it all every game.

BBC isn't shining, there's too much of a gab between the midfield and the attack. James and Modric made the connection between the midfield and the attack. Neither Lucas or Illaramendi are very good at defending nor atacking, whcih makes Kroos have to help much more in defense which isn't his strong point, and leaves Isco isolated in the creative aspect of the game.

Ronaldo doesn't look hungry anymore, after the Ballon D Or it seems like he's satisfied with everything and really doesn't care anymore.
Benzema is not a player that will change a game, if the team plays well, then he plays well at times, if the team plays bad, he plays bad. He isn't a game changer and will never be. He dissapears many games, and I agree with Rayrex, he only performs good against Barcelona, and the odd big game, but most of the time, he's no where to be seen. Specially at the start of this year.
Bale seems lost, in every aspect of his game, bad passes, shots, dribbles, take ons, basically everything that he could do wrong, he's doing wrong. He doesn't look confortable, and with the team not playing at its best, he wont do much either. He is the type of player that can change games, unlike Benzema, but only on top form, and for the past few months, specially since the Valencia defeat, he's been poor in every single aspect of the game.

Why did we pay 40m for Illaramendi? Liverpool got Coutinho for 8m, Spurs got Eriksen for 11m, Chelsea got Hazard for about 37m, Dortmund got Reus for 18m, Chelsea got MATIC, a player who could do us wonders, for 22m. Illaramendi is not worth more than 10m, so I find it completely insane and ludicrous that Florentino would pay such a high amount of money for a player who's mediocre at best, and wouldn't start in the likes of Dortmund, Liverpool, Atletico, and other decent teams that don't have a budget comparable to Real Madrid's.

Changes:
Our squad obviously needs to change, I agree with Rayrex on changing to a 4-4-2 formation. Bale clearly isn't cutting it at RW/RM, so why not move him to LM/LW and Ronaldo to striker? The best version of Bale (Tottenham) he was often played down the left side, or the middle, in a second striker role. Ronaldo will not be benched, have that clear, no matter how bad he's playing, there's 1% possibility that Ronaldo will start as a substitute most games.

(4-4-2)

--------------Casillas

Carvajal Ramos Pepe/Varane Marcelo

-------James Kroos Modric Isco

-------Bale/Benzema Ronaldo

Putting Bale at striker with Ronaldo would be a bit risky, as neither of them are classic #9's, but things aren't working, and if you're not willing to take risks, then there's no point at all. I think James and Isco both need to start, they have both been better than Bale and Benzema this season, not necessarily stats wise, but gameplay wise they have.

(4-2-3-1)

--------------Casillas

Carvajal Ramos Pepe/Varane Marcelo

-----------Kroos Modric

--------James Isco Bale

------------Ronaldo

Using the 4-2-3-1 would defintely bring a change to the squad, could be for the good, could be for the bad. Madrid has not used the 4-2-3-1 formation since Mourinho was our manager, and quite frankly I enjoy this formation. The only downside's I see to it is that Kroos and Moric aren't defensive minded midfielders, which could leave us exposed. I'm not sure how Cristiano would do at striker, specially at lone striker since he loves to cut down the wing.

(4-3-3) [False-9/Guardiola Style]

-------------Casillas

Carvajal Ramos Pepe/Varane Marcelo

--------Isco Modric Kroos

--------------James
-----Bale --------------Ronaldo

This wouldn't solve the Bale at RW/RM problem, but then again James and Bale could switch roles, and try that. This as well, is a very risky formation, but worth a go. We have seen James has an incredible capability of scoring goals, and assisting, he's a Messi type of player, but obviously less talented. I think he should have a go at that role. As we all know, he was the world cup's top scorer, and this really shows that he has the capability of scoring, and assisting s we have seen at Madrid.

These are all ideas I think Ancelotti should give a go, at least in training. I'm obviously not a professional manager, and Carlo knows best, but I really hope he changes the formation/players, specially when Ramos, Modric, and James get back from injury. Cheers if you read all of his btw.

Casillas

Carvajal/Pepe/Ramos/Marcelo

James/Kroos/Modric/Isco

Ronaldo/Benzema

That is our best option. The 4-4-2 is solid, and can allow us to score plenty whilst simultaneously maintaining defensive rigidity. Bale will be left out of this lineup because he has failed to live up to standards this season. Just look at the stark contrast in performances between Bale and Neymar. Neymar a much more involved player in the team's play than Gareth. Bale must be dropped until he is able to pick his form back up again.

Bale costed some points, i guess his indirect rivalry with Neymar is affecting his game play, they were bought the same moment and they always compare to ach other so Neymar scoring goals may have affected Bale, understandable.

But Bale won some points, like winning the last minute penalty agaisnt Cordoba and converting it when Ronaldo was sent off, he is still progressing its only his second year on a very high level and high expctations so he will learn from his mistakes.

The 4-3-3 needs a world class midlefield because the balance of a 3 mid players is hard to find, unless they are top class players, i can see clearly James importace in the field.

lt's hope for a miserable end too

Sometimes it's look like he's still thinking that he's in Spurs, where was probably everything about him.

I think Madrid will be in-form when Modric comes. Just wait a little.

Footballers are humans too. They have their ups and downs.....

Modric is set to play Vs Schalke, the league is far from being ended, inexpected scenarios are likely to happen and sometimes dressing room issues unknown by fans can play a role...
Last year after loosing in march to Barça in Bernabeu who though the end of the tear would be that succesful ? Almost in CL quarters and 1 pt from title in the league, this looks as a crisis only in Barça/Real.

Lol please , league ended . Go and bet huge with no Fear on Barcelona ( I am sure you already did ) . No way will Barcelona surrender title at home ground . They will tear that ground apart and beat Madrid to their knees .

Instead of pointing fingers at players lets look at the main problem. Madrid's problem is Ancelotti who was never successful in long campaigns . He runs out of ideas in the League football . Elimination competition is where he was always good .

Just in the last game why did he bring on Jese ? That was a crucial mistake .

If Carlo does not win the league or CL , he will be so out . Too bad , Carlo is a great person .

^ That's true. Ancelotti was never good at long campaigns. His specialty was always winning cups that involve elimination rounds. Unfortunately, the harsh truth is that Carlito will be sacked if he fails to win a trophy this season. That is a shame because I really like him.

I guess you are joking, they still have a direct confrontation, Barça last games in the league :

• Eibar ( away/ tough game )
• Clasico (home)
• Celta Vigo ( away / Vigo defeated Barça in Camp Nou with great display )
• Almeria ( Home/ looks easy fixture )
• Sevilla ( away/ very tough game )
• Valencia ( home/ very tough game )
• Espagnol ( away/ derby tough game )
• Getafe ( home )
• Cordoba ( away/ Madrid miraculously didnt drop points in this game last min pk / team of fighters like stoke )
• Sociedad ( home/ moysey effect :) ) seriously Barça lost to them, in form Sociedad will put a big fight.
• Atletico Madrid ( away/ very very tough game )
• Deportivo ( home )

7 complicated games, 6 away games, hosting Madrid and Valencia, away to Sevilla and Atleti.

Barça has the toughest schedjule of the 2, Atleti isnt to be ruled out if they beat Valencia tonight...

Atletico just scored against Valencia, PL is over, la Liga is going crazy now...

Edit : Madrid Schedjule.

Levante ( home)
Clasico ( away )
Granada ( home )
Rayo ( away )
Eibar ( Home )
Malaga (home )
Vigo ( away )
Almeria ( home )
Sevilla ( away )
Valencia ( home )
Espagnol ( away )
Getafe ( home )

7 home games, 5 away, 4 complicated games, all games against Atleti played.