José Mourinho faces the biggest challenge of his second spell with Real Madrid: managing the egos of the club's most gifted stars. It is a problem that has defeated Carlo Ancelotti, in his final year at least, along with Xabi Alonso and Álvaro Arbeloa in recent times.
The crisis runs far deeper than what happens on the pitch. Its impact on the team's performances is clear, and it has effectively pushed them away from the major titles. For the Bernabéu, that is simply unacceptable.
Getty ImagesFormer Real Madrid players Alvaro Benito and Rafa Alkorta pinpointed the real challenge facing the Portuguese coach during comments on the "El Larguero" programme on Spanish radio station "Cadena SER": managing ego and pride.
According to Benito, Mourinho arrived at the Spanish club at the peak of his coaching career, a far cry from his current situation. "But he is a coach with great abilities, and he knows better than anyone else what the team's problem has been in recent years in terms of defensive and offensive organisation," he said.
The starting line-up, name by name, is "extremely competitive", Benito added. He stressed that the Portuguese coach's challenge lies in getting all the stars to understand one another and cooperate on the pitch.
Tactical discipline and commitment are the only way to keep the team from falling, Alvaro Benito emphasised. "The team is equipped to win everything, but to achieve that they will have to meet the commitments that Mourinho will demand of them," he said.
Those commitments, along with the defensive and physical effort, will be the key to "avoiding falling into the same trap again", he warned.
The Spanish club cannot carry on down the same road, Benito explained. "In this way it is very difficult to succeed in beating very good teams."
Getty Images SportRafa Alkorta, for his part, stressed that success has little to do with tactical diagrams and everything to do with leadership: "Beyond the tactical style, the key lies in the management to change the course of a team that for two years has relied on individuals more than being a complete group."
Reconciling "this ego and this pride" is "the most difficult thing", Alkorta explained, and none of the previous coaches managed it.
Still, he backed the Portuguese to crack it. "He is the only one capable of making them understand that solidarity is not a trivial matter, but a necessary element to win the league and cup titles."
Benito warned that this squad hands Real Madrid their toughest man-management test yet. "With Bellingham, Diomande, Mbappe and Vini, you have four attackers who are untouchable. In principle, it is a team liable to break. And who holds the balance? It must be everyone."
Paris Saint-Germain offered Benito his model. "It has shattered every legend in football, because they play with Vitinha, Joao Neves and Fabian, with two very attacking full-backs, and the team does not break because everyone presses and everyone works."
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Getty Images SportYou cannot separate Real Madrid's escalating crisis of arrogance from the absence of so many leaders inside the dressing room. It would have been hard to imagine Los Blancos falling into this fatal trap with Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Nacho Fernandez still at the Bernabeu.
Real have lost every one of those names now, and you can add Dani Carvajal to the list. From the old guard, only Thibaut Courtois remains, a man you can rely on to bring calm to the dressing room.
Here lies one of the ironies. Club captain Federico Valverde was at the centre of the team's biggest flashpoint last season, clashing with Aurelien Tchouameni, and he has a habit of overstepping the mark with teammates and opponents alike. His famous run-in with Alex Baena is proof enough.
Of the players to arrive recently, only Bernardo Silva ranks among the veterans capable of creating that calm inside the dressing room.
