Would Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid Beat a Best XI of Recently Sold Players?
Real Madrid's transfer activity this summer was notable only because it was far less, and worth far less, than usual—they only signed Alvaro Morata, and they only sold Jese from their regular first-team squad.
It has proved to be good business so far, with Morata impressing until his recent injury and Jese still not settling into a regular role at his new club, Paris Saint-Germain. But there have been accusations in the past that Real Madrid's transfer business is more concerned with names, branding and commercial viability than actual on-pitch growth and success.
Is that true, though? With regards to outgoing players, there have been some big-name departures—but are Madrid worse off without them?
To compare, we've formed a best XI of stars sold by Real Madrid over the past six years, dating back to 2011/12 to keep it relevant—that's the season Raphael Varane and Fabio Coentrao, both current squad members, joined Los Blancos, with Luka Modric soon after.
Could the sold players beat the current best XI that Zinedine Zidane can field?
Goalkeeper: Iker Casillas
No prizes for guessing the No. 1. Spanish legend Iker Casillas departed for FC Porto in 2015, and despite not always enjoying the best of times initially (and certainly not reaching his previous ceiling), it's apparent that he is happier, more consistent and less vilified by the fans.
Casillas was a Madrid hero whose time at the club ended badly, but he's still a good goalkeeper in terms of European standards. He might struggle to keep out the BBC attack—many do—but that's also down to those in front of him.
Keylor Navas, Real's current No. 1, is the better of the two now, though.
Defence: Lassana Diarra, Ezequiel Garay, Ricardo Carvalho, Alvaro Arbeloa
It's a little makeshift, as Real haven't tended to sell on too many defenders in recent times—Pepe, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo and Varane are all some of the club's long-term projects. Even so, there's enough to form a good back four.
Garay, now of Valencia, and Carvalho provide experience, aggression and aerial dominance. That would be the envy of many clubs in Spain now, even with Carvalho an elder statesman at 38; just a few months ago, he was part of Portugal's successful Euro 2016 squad and a first choice at Monaco.
Diarra, now at Marseille, is out of position at right-back, but versatility was always one of his key traits, and he performed there for Real and other clubs on several occasions. Arbeloa only left Madrid in the summer just past, and his performances on either side of defence were rarely questioned.
It's a solid back line, with plenty of power and good communicators, though perhaps speed might be an issue given Garay, at 30, is the youngest. Good job Real's current side don't have many quick forwards then...
Central midfield: Xabi Alonso, Sami Khedira
A pairing made in heaven, for some. An Alonso-Khedira double pivot was a thing of beauty for Madrid, especially around the 2012/13 season before injury and falling out of favour meant others came between them.
Alonso, the holder, was (and is) capable of winning back possession and distributing short or long with equal accuracy. Khedira, the rampaging destroyer, is wrongly pigeonholed by some as a defensive midfielder—with Real, he surged around the pitch making sure possession belonged to Los Blancos and surprising the opposition with his late bursts into the box.
Between them, they played more than 7,000 minutes for Real in 12/13. Since leaving, they have both become key players for their current sides, Bayern Munich and Juventus, respectively.
Real's current midfield is strong technically, too: Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Modric, when all are fit. The problem is they haven't been, not this term. Any two and Mateo Kovacic is the most frequent trio, and there's not much wrong with those combinations. But thanks to a blend of balance, productivity, penetration from deep and protecting the defence, Alonso-Khedira won't be bettered by many.
Attacking midfield: Angel Di Maria, Mesut Ozil, Jese
Naturally, with Real having previously favoured big-money deals to sign big-name players, there also had to be some outgoing star names to balance the books. Angel Di Maria and Mesut Ozil were two such sales, and both would grace most XIs in world football.
Jese, Kaka and Jose Callejon are the candidates for the third spot in the attacking midfield line, but each falls short in comparison to the other two—Kaka due to age, of course, though he continues to impress when fit for Orlando City in MLS.
There's speed, a goal threat, no shortage of creativity and invention from the line of three, and whether Casemiro is fit or not for Zidane's XI, they'd be hard-pressed to contain Ozil for the full 90 minutes. Going the other way, Di Maria is hard-working enough to counter the threat down the current Madrid side's wing.
Striker: Gonzalo Higuain
Hands up who made a €90 million move this summer? Just Gonzalo Higuain, former Madrid and Napoli striker, now leading the line at Juventus—replacing Morata, incidentally, who moved back to Madrid from Turin, Italy.
The third-most expensive player of all time, Higuain has already hit nine goals for his new club and is certainly outperforming Real's Karim Benzema for overall form this season...but Real's forwards also (usually) include Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.
Shots—lots of them—are guaranteed, and Higuain is a much more complete striker now than when he left Madrid.
Now vs. Then
Favouritism and preference of style will surely come into deciding which XI is the better. Perhaps finding who's more effective overall is key in deciding which team would win.
From midfield to attack, the sold team is packed with star quality, work rate, goalscoring potential and high-value individuals. Though as a side overall (perhaps naturally, not many leave the Santiago Bernabeu in the prime of their careers), the group is a little old—which for a one-off game won't be a problem.
The real issue is the defence and whether it could contain Ronaldo, Bale, Morata and Co. when the current Los Blancos stars break through the midfield lines.
While Zidane's back four isn't exactly sturdy and consistent itself this term, Keylor is a fantastic last line of defence—Casillas is hit-and-miss.
It would be an interesting matchup, and there might not be too much in it either way, but the equal firepower of both sides and the current Real Madrid team's slightly better-balanced defence could tip the balance.
We're awarding Zidane's team the greater potential for victory.
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