Real Madrid’s Deep-Lying Playmaker Dilemma Part I: Diagnosing the Problem

The tie against Bayern Munich further reinforced the need to sign a DLP.  Trent Alexander-Arnold led Madrid with 52 pass attempts at the Bernabéu while Fede Valverde led the team with only 32 pass attempts in Munich.  Compare that to Bayern who had seven players that exceeded Valverde’s pass attempts in the return leg led by Joshua Kimmich’s 118 pass attempts. Alexander-Arnold and Valverde’s pass attempts in this season’s quarterfinals are also significantly less than the 82 passes Kroos attempted at the Allianz Arena on April 30th, 2024, or the 112 passes Kroos distributed eight days later at the Bernabéu, with the Madrid midfielder leading all players on both teams in pass attempts in each of the semifinal matches in 2024.

This season, Antonio Rüdiger has led Madrid in passes attempted per 90 in La Liga (73.3) while Dean Huijsen did the same for the team in Champions League play (69 pass attempts per 90).  It would have been unfathomable five seasons ago that anyone other than a midfielder would lead the team in passing. Recall that Kroos averaged over 100 touches per match in each of his last five seasons at Madrid, consistently ranking amongst the top two in Europe’s top five leagues in each of those seasons. The German legend dictated the pace at which Madrid played. By having more of the ball, Kroos also served to negate the opposition’s opportunities to create chances. That is, defending with the ball rather than without it. Don’t underestimate the importance of this factor in explaining Madrid’s defensive problems the past two seasons.

A quick revision of this year’s eight Champions League quarterfinalists (see Exhibit A below) finds that 3 of the 4 semifinalists have DLP’s leading the team in passing (PSG – Vitinha in Ligue 1; Bayern – Kimmich in Bundesliga and Pavlovic in Champions League; Koke – Atletico Madrid) while the fourth, Arsenal, has arguably the best passing center-back in Europe in William Saliba.

There has been some consideration that the DLP role at Madrid could be filled by Arda Güler, the 21 year old Turkish phenom who has had a breakout season for Madrid in 2025/2026 and was among Madrid’s best players in the Champions League elimination rounds against Manchester City and Bayern Munich. Xabi Alonso tried this during his tenure on the Madrid bench when he decided to play Arda deeper on the pitch following Bellingham’s return from shoulder surgery. But Güler is a player that has shown an innate ability to generate scoring chances for teammates with regularity, ranking amongst Europe’s best in assists, key passes and big scoring chances this season.  Given his strong partnership with Kylian Mbappé, he would best serve Madrid playing behind the forward line in his preferred 10 position.

There has also been discussion of Alexander-Arnold having a much more prominent role in the distribution of the football at Madrid. It is useful to recall that TAA was the leading passer during several seasons in the Premier League for Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool. Clearly if Klopp were to find his way to the Madrid bench, Alexander-Arnold’s role on the team could be greatly enhanced.

The question remains largely unanswered on who would be sacrificed from Madrid’s starting 11 if there is no unforeseen sale at the club to incorporate a new DLP into the line-up.

• Would it be Valverde, one of Madrid’s captains who has been one of Europe’s best players in the calendar year of 2026? Highly unlikely given his recent form and all he offers the team in attack and defense.
• Would it be Tchouaméni, who is playing perhaps his best football in a Madrid jersey since Arbeloa arrived as coach, is highly valued by club management and was sorely missed in Munich? Also unlikely despite his on-ball limitations.
• Would it be Güler who at 21 is coming off a breakout season at Madrid? Hard to envision sitting Güler coming off this season and taking into account that his partnership with Mbappé is one of the best in Europe.
• Or would it be Bellingham, arguably the most talented and complete midfielder of the four and the youngest player ever named Player of the Season in two of the top five European leagues, who will still be only 23 starting next season? Benching Bellingham would be a decision that would send shockwaves throughout Europe.

It is clear that bringing on an organizador will require making some tough decisions and challenge the status quo and that is even without taking into account the likely return of Nico Paz, one of Serie A’s best players this season, back into the squad. But given the poor results the last two seasons, ruffling some feathers within the locker room should be the least of concerns when thinking of a new signing.

Amongst the players most often mentioned as possible enhancements to fill the DLP role are PSG’s Vitinha, City’s Rodri and Chelsea’s Enzo Fernández. Part II of this series will discuss each of the three and other possible solutions Madrid may consider this summer to fill this pivotal position on the pitch.