Asier Illarramendi Disappoints Again Despite Real Madrid Victory vs. Almeria

Asier Illarramendi failed to take advantage of his latest opportunity to prove his value to Real Madrid in their 3-0 victory at home to Almeria on Wednesday.

The Basque midfielder was handed his second consecutive league start despite a poor display in Madrid’s end-to-end 4-2 win away to Celta Vigo on Sunday. He disappointed once more, even though his side eventually recorded a comfortable victory.

Fabian Orellana had taken advantage of the unchecked space between the Madrid lines to wreak havoc for Celta.

On Wednesday, it was Thomas Partey and Tomer Hemed who regularly picked up the ball in an area of the pitch that Illarramendi should have been shutting down.

Almeria came into the match on the edge of the relegation zone but showed no inclination towards sitting back and awaiting their fate.

From the off, they made it clear that they intended to interrupt Madrid’s rhythm. When the ball was won, they moved it forward neatly through midfield into the final third, with Partey and Hemed acting as good initial focal points.

The other central midfielder, Toni Kroos, cannot be completely absolved of blame for the ease with which the visitors were able to bring those two into the game. But in theory at least, Illarramendi is the more natural defender of the pair.

It was notable that against both Celta Vigo and Almeria, it was his side of the midfield two that was the most vulnerable.

The 25-year-old let his frustration get the better of him with a needless kick-out at Corona late in the half. His indecision in possession—as illustrated by FourFourTwo—capped off a first-half performance that was far from impressive, as noted by Madrid-based journalist Ben Hayward:

James Rodriguez’s superb volley on the stroke of half-time was a spectacular way for Madrid to notch their 100th league goal of the campaign. It also provided them with a barely deserved lead in what had until then been a very awkward encounter for manager Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

The goal seemed to settle some nerves, and Madrid quickly added to their advantage with an own goal from Mauro Dos Santos—with Cristiano Ronaldo offside behind him—four minutes into the second half.

The easing of the tension of the first period did not, however, have a positive effect on Illarramendi’s display. There were audible groans from the supporters inside the stadium when he gave the ball away in midfield just before the hour mark.

According to Diego Torres of El Pais (in Spanish), the Mutriku native hasn’t enjoyed the full confidence of Ancelotti since his poor first-half performance against Borussia Dortmund in last year’s UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final.

That was recently illustrated by the Italian’s decision to move Sergio Ramos into midfield rather than field Illarramendi alongside Kroos in this year’s quarter-final against Atletico Madrid.

Illarramendi's self-confidence now also looks to have deserted him. It won’t have been helped by the poor reaction he received from the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium crowd when he was substituted for Lucas Silva on 65 minutes, as noted by Managing Madrid’s Lucas Navarrete:

It rounded off what many noted had been a difficult night for the 25-year-old:

Illarramendi did have the chance to leave Madrid during the January transfer window. Per Jaime Martin of Marca, Athletic Bilbao tabled a €25 million bid, only for the midfielder to turn them down in favour of staying and fighting for his place at the Bernabeu.

However, he has produced little since then to suggest that he is capable of carving out a long-term future for himself in the capital. It is difficult to see a way back for his Madrid career from here, especially if Ancelotti remains at the helm last season.

Real Sociedad coach David Moyes recently confirmed, per AS.com, that he would be interested in bringing Illarramendi back to San Sebastian.

Athletic, too, are highly likely to return with a renewed bid for his services this summer.

It might be best for all concerned for him to take the opportunity to move back to his native Basque country. Back on familiar ground and with more regular playing time, he might just rediscover the form that persuaded Madrid to part with €32 million to sign him up in the summer of 2013.

Right now, he doesn’t look worth half of that.