Reasons Behind Real Madrid's Stunning Season so Far

Real Madrid have suffered back-to-back defeats over the last week but those losses should not cloud judgement of what has otherwise been a very successful season.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side still top La Liga and already have two trophies—the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup—in their cabinet. They embarked on a club-record 22-match winning streak between September and December.

Such a situation seemed unlikely in the early weeks of the campaign. Madrid were defeated by Atletico Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup and then lost two of their opening three matches in the Primera Division—including another defeat to Atletico.

The departures of Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria looked to have significantly weakened their starting XI. The balance provided by Di Maria—“the piece of the jigsaw which resolved all of the team’s problems,” in the words of AS columnist Alfredo Relano—was particularly missed.

But Ancelotti gradually began to find solutions within his squad. Isco and James Rodriguez responded favourably to the greater defensive responsibilities entrusted to them, while Toni Kroos adapted quickly to his role as the deepest-lying midfielder.

“He has aced his crash course in replacing Xabi Alonso,” Ancelotti said of Kroos in an interview with Onda Cero radio (h/t Marca) in November. “He plays at pace, always picks the right pass, doesn’t lose the ball and wins back possession.”

When Gareth Bale suffered a thigh injury on international duty with Wales in October, Madrid switched to a 4-4-2 formation. Isco, Kroos, Rodriguez and Luka Modric formed an inventive and effective midfield quartet, and outplayed Barcelona at their own game during Madrid’s 3-1 victory at the Bernabeu.

Ancelotti’s willingness to adapt his plans and seek novel solutions, in alliance with the ability of his players to adjust to new roles and positions, has been key in Madrid’s strong campaign to date.

Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images

The harmony within the ranks has been another important factor. Madrid have a relatively small and settled first-team squad and while this clearly has some drawbacks, including the overuse of certain players, it does make it easier for Ancelotti to manage the egos within the group.

The Italian clearly subscribes to Pep Guardiola’s view that a smaller squad results in less personal problems between a coach and his players.

Until the recent exaggeration of the reaction of Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema to Gareth Bale’s decision not to square to a free Benzema during the defeat to Valencia, there had been no reports of the type of internal fissures that appeared during Jose Mourinho’s time in charge at the Bernabeu.

“There’s such harmony in the dressing room,” Sergio Ramos told Marca in November. “Everybody is happy and that’s a massive factor when you’re chasing success.”

It would of course be remiss not to mention the incredible goalscoring contribution of Ronaldo. The 29-year-old has scored 26 times in 15 league appearances and five times in six Champions League outings. His hat-tricks against Deportivo La Coruna, Elche, Athletic Bilbao and Celta Vigo led Madrid to comfortable victories.

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LA LIGA: Cristiano Ronaldo & Neymar are the only players with a NPG/90 above 1.0: http://t.co/HNryZRcu7B pic.twitter.com/h8PS2FOuDS

— BSports Football (@BSportsFootball) January 6, 2015"

The Portugal international has looked a little jaded in recent weeks, and was rested from the start of Wednesday’s Copa del Rey defeat to Atletico. Per data from Soccerway, only Kroos has played more minutes than him in all competitions so far this season.

Giving Ronaldo the rest he needs to enter the final months of the season in peak condition should be among Ancelotti’s priorities over the next month or so.

In the last week, Atletico and Valencia have established a couple of templates for teams who wish to trouble Madrid during the remainder of the season. Most Primera Division sides lack the quality required to yield similar results with these approaches but some of Madrid’s potential opponents in the latter stages of the Champions League will surely have taken note.

As Ancelotti said after the defeat to Atletico on Wednesday, talk of a crisis after two losses is highly melodramatic. There are, though, still things to be worked on.

It has been an excellent season to date but if it is to end with further silverware, the Italian will have to put his problem-solving skills to good use to find alternative solutions for teams who are able to quieten Madrid’s usual match-winners. That could, in the end, be the difference between success and failure come May.