AS: Real Madrid to Miss Five Midfielders in Champions League, Mourinho Must Create 'Magic'

According to AS, Real Madrid manager Mourinho is facing a difficult shortage of midfield options and must create some 'magic' in midfield.

In the Champions League match against Inter Milan, Real Madrid will be without several players. Bernardo Silva, Güler and Camavinga are unavailable due to suspensions, while Tchouaméni and Thiago Pitarch are sidelined with injuries. Mourinho is forced to create 'magic' in midfield.

After the unexpected defeat at La Cartuja, Real Madrid's journey remains difficult. With the Champions League returning, Mourinho's midfield problems have become increasingly serious. The Portuguese coach will have to assemble a midfield line that has never been used before, and the large number of absences could even force the team to change formation. The unavailable players include Bernardo Silva, Güler, Camavinga and Tchouaméni, each for different reasons.

Bernardo Silva's absence comes from a handball incident in the second leg of last season's Champions League round of 16 between Manchester City and Real Madrid, when he was sent off with a red card, and that match also led to Guardiola's team being eliminated (3-0 at the Bernabéu, 2-1 at the Etihad). Güler and Camavinga accumulated suspensions in the Champions League quarter-final in Munich, where Real Madrid were eventually eliminated. Tchouaméni is still recovering from injury. At present, Valverde is the only available midfielder under Mourinho. If he keeps the 4-2-3-1 formation, he must find new solutions.

There are four players in the squad who can fill this huge midfield gap. They are not natural midfielders but can play in that position as substitutes. In order, they are Bellingham, Alexander-Arnold, Sestero, and even Huijsen.

Bellingham has shown several times this season that he is better suited to playing behind the forwards and closer to the opponent's goal, as demonstrated by his first Real Madrid season in which he scored 23 goals and provided 13 assists. Mourinho described his ideal position a few days ago: 'He has the ability to score goals and must play close to the box. He is a No. 10, he can play as a No. 6 or No. 8, but if he is positioned too deep we lose his threat near goal.' Given his versatility, moving him deeper seems the most reasonable option, especially if Brahim Díaz can play as the attacking midfielder without changing the 4-2-3-1 system.

Unlike Mourinho's view that Bellingham should stay close to the opponent's penalty area, Xabi Alonso holds the opposite opinion. He said during pre-season: 'For me, he is a midfielder.' After that, this season became extremely difficult for Bellingham. Nevertheless, the midfield position is not unfamiliar to him.

Alexander-Arnold's ability makes him a candidate for this position, at least in an inverted role. Under Mourinho, he has already shown this ability, such as in the match against Fiorentina in Klagenfurt and the second half of the Teresa Herrera Trophy. However, he is not a pure midfielder; he appeared as a full-back with Dumfries ahead of him. Defensively, he strictly played as a full-back; offensively, he moved significantly inside, building from the back and then making runs into central areas to join attacks. In any case, this option still requires another midfielder to partner Valverde, so the problem remains.

Another feasible option for Alexander-Arnold to play in midfield would be changing the formation to 4-3-3. In that case, Alexander-Arnold would operate on the right, Bellingham on the left, with Valverde between them, while the front three would consist of Diomande or Brahim Díaz, Mbappé and Vinícius.

Huijsen's excellent feel for the ball has led many people to believe he could play in midfield. However, this could be a double-edged sword, because the technical advantages he provides in midfield could be offset by what the team loses when building from the back with Rüdiger and Konaté as the centre-back pairing. When Huijsen began his youth development at Málaga United Coast Club, he was a pure striker. It was his coach David Santos who convinced him to use his physical advantages and technical ability to become an excellent ball-playing centre-back.

Huijsen's talent caught Mourinho's attention at an early stage. When the Spanish-Dutch dual-national player was still at Juventus, Mourinho wanted to bring him on loan to Roma. At Roma, Huijsen scored one of the most beautiful goals of his career: carrying the ball from midfield into the penalty area before firing a powerful shot into the net. That came against Frosinone, and since then Mourinho has known his ability in that area.

This opportunity could also be a chance to trust academy player Sestero. It should be noted that Thiago Pitarch is not under consideration because he is still recovering from a knee sprain, which occurred during his second training session after joining Mourinho's squad. With Manuel Ángel sold to Fulham before the transfer window closed, Sestero will receive more opportunities during the period of limited personnel.

At the beginning of pre-season preparations, when the World Cup internationals had not yet returned, Mourinho included the 20-year-old Zaragoza youngster among the 15 players added to the first-team squad. He earned this opportunity through his five appearances last season under Xabi Alonso (including his Copa del Rey debut against Talavera) and Arbeloa, as well as his Champions League group-stage away appearance against Benfica at the Estádio da Luz.