From a white season to a dark year. For some Real Madrid players, this 2025-26 financial year was one of the most difficult. Both on and off the pitch, Casa Blanca burned at every level. On the ground floor, Florentino Pérez tried to maintain the foundations. But the Madrid president encountered terrible difficulties, he who did not appreciate certain choices of the sports management. In the midst of the crisis, he decided to put his place on the line during the presidential elections. On the first floor, Xabi Alonso and then Álvaro Arbeloa tried to keep the house in order. But quite the opposite happened. The Real Madrid locker room was transformed into a boxing ring with Aurélien Tchouameni and Fede Valverde as the main protagonists.
Double penalty for some injured
But almost all the players have experienced moments of tension this year. This had repercussions both collectively and individually. But also in national selections. Considered one of the biggest clubs in the world, if not the biggest, Real Madrid brings together the best players in the world, who play for their country. But this year, many Madrilenians will stay at home and follow the World Cup as spectators. For some, there is a double disappointment, because without their injuries, they would be at the party. This is the case with Rodrygo. The striker suffers from a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament and a ruptured external meniscus in his right leg and will miss several months of competition.
His compatriot, Eder Militão, will not represent the Seleção either due to a glitch in the biceps femoris of his left thigh. Ferland Mendy had very little chance of being selected by Didier Deschamps. But the versatile left side will not be part of the American adventure since he suffers from an injury to the tendon of the rectus femoris muscle of his right leg which requires several months of rest. It’s not just in the infirmary that there are disappointed people. In the locker room, other Real Madrid players were applying for a place in the World Cup. They remained at the dock. It’s hard not to think of Eduardo Camavinga. Still supported by Didier Deschamps, the midfielder has fallen by the wayside. A hard blow for the former Rennais, who had a very tough year from an individual point of view.
Surprising absences
His absence is not an injustice, rather a surprise since DD has always trusted him in good times and bad. For Trent Alexander-Arnold, the blow is also tough. The right back lost his place in the national team. Thomas Tuchel decided to leave him at home and explained his choice. “I think it’s a very difficult decision that we made. There is no doubt about his talent, no doubt about his career and what he can bring to teams. We created a slightly different model of play when he wasn’t in training camp in September, October, November. It was a game model built on intensity. » The former Liverpool player had no place there.
The biggest surprise ultimately came from Luis de la Fuente. The La Roja coach has decided not to take any player from Real Madrid. This had never happened. Raúl Asencio, Álvaro Carreras, Dean Huijsen, Fran García, Dani Ceballos and Gonzalo García all hoped to be there. They will also remain at the dock. For the residents of the Santiago-Bernabéu stadium, this decision is a new snub after a particularly difficult year. They will not have representatives in the country’s national team. The good side of things is that the new staff will be able to count on many internationals when they resume. It will also be necessary to see in what psychological state they will be after such a disappointment. They will have to overcome it to move forward and have a good year in Madrid. In Valdebebas, there will still be Merengues to encourage at the World Cup, like Kylian Mbappé (France), Vinicius Jr (Brazil) and many others. A small consolation for the club.
