Arda Guler is nearing a crossroads much like the one faced by two of Real Madrid's most celebrated midfield talents across different eras, Guti and Luka Modric.
The Turkish star's gifts have won universal admiration, just as Guti's once did. The real challenge now is to evolve from a beautiful footballer into one his coaches can trust in the toughest fixtures, the very quality that made Modric one of the most important players in the club's history, according to a report in Spanish newspaper "AS".
Everyone inside Real Madrid rates Guler as an important asset. Yet he remains the weakest link when the stakes rise. He has finished 7 matches that he started from the bench, started only two of 8 Clasico fixtures, and 3 of 9 derby encounters.
His brilliant recent form had earned him a start against Atletico Madrid at the "Metropolitano", a selection that came at the expense of Diomande, the most expensive signing in Real Madrid's history.
Dean Huijsen's sending off forced Jose Mourinho to recalculate on the fly. The plan collapsed, Vinicius went out of the picture, and Guler was among those affected. His exit was a reminder all the same: his value in the eyes of the fans still outweighs his presence in the big matches.
Guler: will he repeat the story of Guti?
Ignoring the similarities between Arda Guler and Guti is difficult, especially in the use of the left foot, the vision, the movement with the ball, the passing between the lines, and the ability to produce artistic touches that make fans feel the player's worth.
The similarity does not stop at the style, though. It has begun to extend to the path of the career itself, and here lies the problem.
Guti scored 77 goals and provided 97 assists with Real Madrid, and few players could match him for enjoyment and creativity when the team needed technical solutions. Even so, he did not always earn the coaches' trust in the most important fixtures.
The Spanish midfielder did not play a single minute in three Champions League finals that Real Madrid won, and he missed out on all of Spain's appearances at the World Cup and the European Championship.
Two of three Intercontinental Cup finals he watched from the bench, while he lost the only one he took part in against Boca Juniors. It was the same story in the European Super Cup, and he watched the famous "Centenary" final from off the pitch. Add to that his absence from 6 of 10 decisive matches in Spanish Super Cup finals when the tournament ran on a two-legged basis.
Guler's numbers raise concern
Guler is heading, at least in part, down the same road.
True, the Turkish star has climbed the pecking order since Xabi Alonso bet on his potential as a key midfield alternative, and Mourinho has also shown his satisfaction with him in the team. But his numbers in the big matches still raise question marks.
Nineteen goals and 28 assists sit against Guler's name at Real Madrid. His arrival into and departure from the calculations against Atletico reopened the old question: when will Arda Guler become a permanent option when the match is on the line?
He received plenty of starts in the less important matches, yet his presence faded in the big ones.
Since breaking into the first team in 2023, Guler has started only two of 8 Clasico fixtures, and 3 of 9 derbies. Even his considerable physical development has not changed the picture entirely: he has played only 10 full matches out of the 119 he has featured in.
Modric: the path that Guler must look towards
If Guler is searching for a different model, Luka Modric offers the picture that could change everything.
The Croatian scored 43 goals and provided 95 assists in a Real Madrid shirt, and his road to the top was anything but easy at first. Some voices even doubted signing him when he arrived.
Modric later turned his talent into reliability and a constant presence in the biggest fixtures. He played every minute of five Champions League finals, and only sat on the bench in the final against Borussia Dortmund.
Across six European Super Cup finals, five Club World Cup finals, the "International Cup" tournament, four Copa del Rey finals, and eight Spanish Super Cup finals, his absences came down to rotation, injury or an incomplete pre-season, never his exclusion from the calculations in the decisive moments.
That exceptional competitive mentality still burns in Modric, and it showed again when he left the pitch to the applause of the fans in the final minutes against Lecce, having led his team to a 3-0 win. Guler, by contrast, trudged off against Atletico feeling frustrated.
During their careers together, Guler got the chance to play alongside Modric in 43 matches, totalling 1479 minutes.
The message to the Turkish star now looks clear: you have the talent that resembles Guti, but you must learn from Modric how talent becomes reliability, and how to be present when the matches are bigger than a display of ability.
Leaving a real legacy at Real Madrid will take more than being a beautiful, enjoyable player. The real challenge is to become the man everyone relies on when the moment arrives that allows no room for error.