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FM20 Team Guide & Tactic - Real Madrid CF

Here is a brief FM20 team guide of the Real Madrid squad, their club structure, relationship any potential managers will have with the board, expectations and possible tactics any FM manager can use.

About the club

Real Madrid or Real are a professional football club that ply their trade in the La Liga. Unlike most European sporting entities, Real Madrid's members (socios) have owned and operated the club throughout its history.

The club was estimated to be worth €3.8 billion ($4.2 billion) in 2019, and it was the highest-earning football club in the world. The club is one of the most widely supported teams in the world. Real Madrid is one of three founding members of La Liga that have never been relegated from the top division since its inception in 1929. The club holds many long-standing rivalries, most notably El Clásico with Barcelona and El Derbi with Atlético Madrid.

Real Madrid are the 2nd most dominant team in La Liga. Domestically, Real have won 64 trophies; 33 La Liga, 19 Copa del Rey, 10 Supercopa de España, 1 Copa Eva Duarte, and 1 Copa de la Liga trophies. In international club football, the club has won 26 European and worldwide titles; 13 UEFA Champions League titles, 3 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, 4 UEFA Super Cup’s and 4 FIFA Club World Cup’s.

Real Madrid are the first club to successfully defend the UEFA Champion’s League and the only club in the League’s history to have won it 3 times in a row. They also have the most semi-final appearances in the Champion’s League. With such a rich history of dominance in the sport, it is easy to see why Real Madrid remain the favourite of most FM Managers.

Board Expectations

The minimum board requirements as you would expect is very high, they would be;

Win the La Liga
Make the QF of the UEFA Champion’s League

Additionally, you will be required to play attacking possession-based football and be required to sign high profile players. The transfer budget when you initially take over should be minimal because the Club have already spent the most amongst all clubs in the summer window with an expenditure of over £280m roping in some of the best players in the world.

Real Madrid have top class training facilities and an excellent youth system. Their 2nd team, Real Madrid Castilla, play in the 2nd division of Spanish Football and you can give game time to youngsters who are knocking on the doors of a first-team chance.

Squad, Formation and Tactical Style

Real Madrid are generally an attacking team. Vertical tiki-taka is probably the best tactic to go with considering what the board wants but since the squad is versatile you can alter the formation as you see fit.

A 4-3-3 is how Real Madrid line-up in real life and is probably the best-suited formation to the available squad of players. This also helps them maintain the width with the overlapping fullbacks who are very attacking in nature.

A rough example of what your line-up would look like in a 4-3-3 formation is as follows;

Thibaut Courtois as a regular keeper.
Raphael Varane & Sergio Ramos as the 2 ball-playing centre backs.
Dani Carvajal & Marcelo as the 2 wing backs who are naturally very attacking.
Casemiro, Luka Modric & Toni Kroos make up the 3 men central midfield, with Casemiro operating as a Ball Winning Midfielder, Modric as a Deep Lying Playmaker & Kroos as an advanced playmaker.
Eden Hazard & Gareth Bale as the 2 inside forwards.
Karim Benzema as a lone forward in a Centre Forward or Defensive Forward role.

Alternatively, you can go with a 4-2-3-1 formation with Isco or Marco Asensio coming into the side as a No:10. The bench also has some strong players like Luka Jovic & Ferland Mendy who will be pushing for first-team chances.

Key Players

The entire squad is riddled with key players with some players are the best in their positions in the entire world.

1. Eden Hazard

Hazard is the record signing for Real Madrid. The Belgian inside forward is amongst the top 5 players in the world, his trickery and dribbling from the left wing will be crucial in securing important results.

2. Gareth Bale

Bale may be facing some issues under current manager Zidane (whom you’ll be replacing) but is a star player on the right-wing. He has already shown what he is capable of by helping Real Madrid win the hattrick Champion’s League with some important goals.

3. Sergio Ramos

Ramos is an inspirational leader and is one of the best Centre Backs in the world. He is also a massive threat from set-pieces.

4. Toni Kroos

Kroos is an important playmaker that makes the Real Madrid team tick. He also delivers wonderful set pieces making the team a nightmare to defend against from corners and freekicks.

Weaknesses

With the fullbacks being very attack-minded, Real Madrid are left open to a lot of counter-attacks and could be difficult to manage against good counter-attacking teams.
With so many stars in the lineup and on the bench, it is hard to give playing time for everyone and you may end up losing some key youngsters who may want regular first-team action.
Some of the best talents of the club are ageing and may be impossible to replace.

Potential Transfers (in)

Real Madrid already boast of some of the best stars in the world, however, these players could be welcome additions to the side.

Neymar
Virgil Van Dijk
Mohammad Salah

Potential Transfers (Out)

These players may be surplus to requirements at the club or may not be of the expected quality.

Gareth Bale (unsettled at the club)
Carvajal
Marcelo

Young Prospects

There are a few exciting young prospects in the ranks who have the potential to be some of the best players in the league. A few examples are;

Luka Jovic (ST)
Rodrygo (AML)
Vinicius Jr (AML, AMR)
Eder Militao (CB)
Takefusa Kubo (AMR,AMC)