Nacho's AC Milan Performance Proves He'll Never Be a Regular for Real Madrid
Luckily, this was only a friendly, because if Nacho Fernandez's suicidal back pass had taken place in a game of any real importance, he would be well advised to keep his head down for the next few days.
He'd certainly do well to dodge Twitter on Tuesday night anyway.
With 24 minutes gone in Dubai, Nacho created the opening goal of the match for Jeremy Menez—the problem being Menez plays for AC Milan, not Real Madrid.
Milan eventually won the match 4-2—their other goals coming from a Stephan El Shaarawy brace and Giampaolo Pazzini. Manager Carlo Ancelotti will be left disappointed at the performances offered by some of his squad players.
It could be argued that only one member of Madrid's starting lineup against the Rossoneri would start if they were playing in a Champions League final tomorrow: Cristiano Ronaldo.
Considering recent form, though, a case could also be made for Isco.
Therefore, there were nine players, plus the youngsters who came off the bench, all looking to impress and stake their claim for a place in the European champions' side.
One of those was Nacho, but if it was possible, his performance at The Sevens Stadium may have seen him fall even further down Ancelotti's pecking order.
That's not just because his lack of awareness meant Menez was easily able to intercept a pass meant for goalkeeper Keylor Navas and put Milan into the lead.
Nor is it because he formed part of a back four that leaked four goals.
Both of those are contributing factors, but the bigger picture is that Nacho is unlikely to ever prosper into a defender good enough to play regularly for Madrid.
In January, he turns 25, and he has never even threatened to become a star at the Bernabeu; even his best performances in the famous white shirt can only be described as "solid."
Against Milan, who despite all their failings domestically at the moment are still one of Europe's most respected clubs, he had another real chance to show Ancelotti that he may have a future in the Spanish capital.
But another average performance was capped with a horrific mistake—although he did win the penalty late on which Karim Benzema converted to make it 4-2.
Ancelotti clearly had his doubts anyway.
Nacho has made just two starts all season in the league, coming on as a sub on a further two occasions, which equates to a total of 202 minutes worth of action in La Liga.
He's featured more regularly in the Copa del Rey and Champions League, though.
He hasn't impressed in any of those performances.
There must come a time when the player himself decides he needs to be playing football more often; there must also come a time when Ancelotti decides he'd be better served handing occasional minutes to a younger, more promising defender.
With a handful of common sense, those decisions will be reached by both parties in the summer.
In the meantime, Nacho is closing in on his 50th game for Madrid in all competitions: He's currently featured in 46 official matches—a total which will surely arrive soon.
It's a significant amount because it should be more than enough games for the club to work out just how good he is.
He may argue he's never been allowed a run of games in the four years which have followed his first-team debut, but the truth is he just isn't quite at the standard required to hold his own at Real Madrid.
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