Breaking Down How Real Madrid Can Get Back on Track During the Season's Run-In

Breaking Down How Real Madrid Can Get Back on Track During the Season's Run-In

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The mood around Real Madrid is not a positive one right now. How could it be? Heading into the international break on the back of a defeat is always painful.

When that defeat comes at the home of your fierce rivals Barcelona and leaves you four points adrift in La Liga's title race, it stings twice as much.
Despite falling 2-1 at the Camp Nou, with Madrid clearly tiring in the second half, there are some plus points they can take from that game. And they desperately need to.
The first mission for Madrid is to clear the cloud of negativity that has been lurking over the Santiago Bernabeu in recent weeks.

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Cristiano Ronaldo must be handled correctly. He needs to be shown that he has to work for the team, but at the same time Carlo Ancelotti cannot upset his star man.
The Portugal international's behaviour in recent weeks has been extremely poor. After being turfed out of the Copa del Rey by rivals Atletico Madrid, Ronaldo was in a bad mood.
Two games after that he was sent off against Cordoba, as he struggled to find the net and was riled up by the Andalusian defence.
When he returned, he walked straight into a 4-0 hammering by Atletico Madrid, which he then exacerbated by having his 30th birthday party that evening. To some extent it is harsh to blame Ronaldo for this; had Madrid beaten Atletico then nobody would have batted an eyelid about the party.
However, he failed to score against Deportivo de la Coruna in Madrid's next game, at the Bernabeu, and the fans started to get on his back.

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Even though Ronaldo has notched six goals in the seven games that followed, he has still been below his best level—both physically and in terms of how he is operating on the pitch.
Perhaps the former influences the latter, but Ronaldo is taking up more central positions and many of his recent goals have been those of a typical striker, rather than the flying wide-man he was.
Take his strike in the Clasico, straight down the middle of the box, first-time finish from 12 yards. Pure poacher material.
Even if Ronaldo's long-term future is as a central player, as he loses his physicality, between now and the end of the season Ancelotti must encourage Ronaldo to play the role that saw him crowned as the world's best player in the previous two years.
Furthermore, Ronaldo needs to work for the team and show it, too. How do you think Gareth Bale feels when his goals are greeted by fury from his team-mate?
Pete Jenson looked at this for the Daily Mail, wondering if the lack of respect Bale is shown in Madrid may affect his decision to stay, particularly considering the star's young daughter will soon be ready for school. He wrote:

Bale’s partner Emma Rhys-Jones lives with him in Madrid although, with a young daughter Alba-Violet not yet three years of age, frequent trips can be made back to Wales. At some point in the future a decision will have to be made about schools. And he will need to be a sure that Madrid is the right city to justify putting down deeper roots.
He says he barely noticed the thugs who tried to kick his car as he drove away from the training ground at 1.30am on Monday. But how long before the lack of respect from supporters, commentators and at times even team-mates begins to take its toll?

The Madrid fan that kicked Bale's Bentley at the Real Madrid training ground, after the Clasico defeat, should not be considered representative of the fan base as a whole. He was just one idiot.
But the general anti-Bale feeling at the Bernabeu is no myth; you just have to sit in the stadium and sense that he is not trusted, or loved, by a significant proportion of match-going supporters.

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With Ronaldo sulking after Bale scored twice against Levante, who can blame the fans for their stance? Because if arguably their greatest-ever player loses his rag at Bale, it's understandable that some supporters will feel the same way.
So unifying the squad and subsequently the supporters is the main job for Ancelotti, as he bids to try to bring some silverware home at the end of the season.
We've discussed the Italian's squad management at length here on Bleacher Report, and it seems apparent that most of the key players are tired.
However, perhaps it is too late for rotation. With the news that Sami Khedira is leaving at the end of the season, Ancelotti may not want to rely on the German.

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With the return of Luka Modric, Ancelotti will probably be best advised to pick his strongest team between now and the end of the season.
Madrid have 10 La Liga matches left and a possible five games remaining in the Champions League. They have come this far overusing a small group of players, and now it may be too late to turn back.
One exception perhaps is Jese. The youngster has a certain spark, a certain flair, and he could be used to liven up the attack, in place of Bale for one game, or even Ronaldo, if Ancelotti really wanted to send a message.
Unfortunately, the coach isn't a big fan of bold moves, and it seems more likely that the "BBC" attack will start every match between now and the end of May.

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The return of James Rodriguez from injury will be a huge boost, given how impressively the Colombian had been playing before his foot injury.
Modric's comeback is also key. The Croatian is the heartbeat of Madrid and, Benzema aside, was Los Blancos' best player in the Clasico. With those two in the side, they instantly look a more fearsome proposition.
Madrid's fixture list is fractionally easier than Barcelona's, given Luis Enrique's side face an 11-day spell when they play against Sevilla, Valencia and PSG twice. That's followed up by the Catalan derby.
So there is hope for Real Madrid, who must be ready to pounce on any stumbles by Barcelona in the weeks ahead.
Barcelona-based journalist Graham Hunter believes there are signs Madrid are ready to roar again already. On ESPN he said Madrid's wonderful El Clasico goal showed they are sharp. Hunter wrote:

I just wonder if it is a sign of health, in the technical, temperamental, psychological and physiological sense for Madrid. A sign that they are on the rise again, after a horrible few weeks. It could also be a hint that Barcelona (in the league) and Atletico (in Europe) will face a dogged, dangerous rival once again.

If that is to be the case then the team must work together, the fans must unite and Madrid have to stay on Barcelona's trail like a cat behind a mouse.