For the first time on Wednesday night, Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni suffered the same fate as club icons Cristiano Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and Iker Casillas: he was whistled by the Bernabeu.
The 24-year-old France international wasn’t the only player to blame for the 3-1 defeat against AC Milan, but he was singled out. The whistles came after a misplaced pass in the build-up to Milan’s second goal, scored by former Madrid striker Alvaro Morata in the 39th minute.
Before that, Tchouameni failed to attack a pinpoint Christian Pulisic delivery from a corner and couldn’t stop Malick Thiaw from heading Milan in front in the 12th minute. Tchouameni was one of a number of Madrid players in close proximity to Thiaw, who didn’t even have to rise highest to score.
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Then, for Morata’s goal, Tchouameni underhit a pass to Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian forward didn’t move towards the ball and Madrid’s defending from there was poor, but the Bernabeu had seen enough to point the finger at the Frenchman for their team’s collapse.
To make matters worse, Tchouameni was replaced at half-time. Medical tests the following day showed he had a sprained left ankle that would keep him out of action for at least a month.
Tchouameni isn’t the first player to be whistled by Madrid’s extremely demanding fans, and he won’t be the last. But how did he get to this point — and how will coach Carlo Ancelotti look to replace him for a set of games that includes a crucial Champions League trip to Liverpool on November 27?
Tchouameni during the Milan defeat (Michael Regan – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
Tchouameni’s €80million signing (with €20m in add-ons) from AS Monaco in 2022 made him one of the five most expensive players in history. Sources close to the deal — who, like all those cited in this article, will remain anonymous to protect relationships — say the influential chief scout Juni Calafat played a key role. Ancelotti was also actively involved, speaking to the player before he arrived.
Casemiro’s exit to Manchester United later that summer seemed to justify that outlay, with Tchouameni primed to take over in defensive midfield. Last month, he made his 100th La Liga appearance for Real Madrid in the game against Celta Vigo.
But in more than two years in the Spanish capital, Tchouameni has yet to fully establish himself. He has often been used as a makeshift central defender, playing there 10 times last season as Madrid struggled with injuries.
According to various Madrid sources, he has also experienced problems with his left foot since he suffered a metatarsal injury in an October 2023 Clasico.
Tchouameni missed last season’s Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund with another injury to the same foot and even travelled to New York to visit a specialist about the potential next steps. All parties agreed to follow a conservative plan for treatment.
Tchouameni kisses the Champions League trophy. He missed the final through injury (Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images)
After the summer, he was absent for two weeks for the same reason and did not travel with France for games against Italy and Belgium in the first international break (he hasn’t been called up for their squad for the upcoming break either after his ankle sprain). Madrid have tried to manage his workload to avoid further complications, which one club source says has prevented him from performing at his best level.
Others at Madrid and close to Tchouameni say his foot problem has been improving. As with any player returning from injury though, it would be expected that his reintroduction to the first team would be measured and considered so as not to result in a reoccurrence of the injury.
Toni Kroos’ shock retirement this summer has led to Tchouameni having to play a more influential role.
He is the midfielder with the highest passing accuracy (92.8 per cent), of those who have played more than 500 minutes this season in La Liga. He has increased his long passes per game (over 30 yards), from 5.1 to 6.9 — something Kroos excelled at.
As we can see from these two pass-receiver maps, Tchouameni has gone from making short, sharp connections in midfield to a more central role in which he drops between the centre-backs and switches play left and right.
But Madrid have struggled with fluidity since losing Kroos, and Tchouameni is not the same player; the coaching staff say that, out of the legendary midfield trio of Casemiro, Luka Modric and Kroos, he is most similar to the Brazilian. They don’t blame him for Madrid’s defeats and say the team is a “difficult puzzle”, which is the real problem. Sources close to Tchouameni say Madrid suffer defensively due to four or five attacking players being in front of the Frenchman.
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Against Celta, Tchouameni was tasked with playing as a third centre-back — a new position in which he looked lost. He had just returned from the October international break and had only had three training sessions to learn that role. The opposition took advantage and Madrid ran out with a narrow win.
Sources close to Tchouameni say playing at centre-back isn’t something that motivates him for the future. They don’t think he has had the opportunity to show his best qualities yet given how he has had to fill in there. But the player has a very good relationship with Ancelotti and has no objections to being a team player if the season requires that.
All parties believe it is too early to draw conclusions in terms of Tchouameni’s future. His camp understood the whistles at the Bernabeu as something that is part of the game. It’s also true that the team didn’t improve after he was replaced in the 4-0 defeat against Barcelona and in the latest loss against Milan.
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Before the last game, club sources called Tchouameni a “jewel to be polished” and nobody denies his importance to Madrid’s future. But several Premier League clubs, including Chelsea and Liverpool, have held an interest in him at one point or another in recent years.
He was scouted extensively by Liverpool before the summer transfer window in 2022, with the club’s then-manager, Jurgen Klopp, a firm admirer, but they conceded defeat when it became clear that his heart was set on moving to the Bernabeu.
Liverpool were in the market for another No 6, Martin Zubimendi, last summer only for him to decide to stay at Real Sociedad. Since then, Ryan Gravenberch has made the defensive midfield position his own under Arne Slot and it is no longer deemed a transfer priority.
Tchouameni and his camp are focused on succeeding at Madrid, but one source close to him admits “in the future, you never know what can happen”.
For now, Tchouameni will have to wait to return to the pitch. He will miss games against Osasuna, Leganes, Liverpool, Getafe and Athletic Bilbao, and it remains to be seen whether he will return for the next matches against Girona and Atalanta.
There aren’t many alternatives — a sign of his importance — but the coaching staff highlight three players if the team continues to play with their 4-4-2 system, of which two could partner with each other in central midfield.
Tchouameni’s possible replacements
Eduardo Camavinga
The most likely candidate to replace his France international team-mate Tchouameni, as he did against Milan.
The 21-year-old suffered a knee sprain at the start of the season which kept him out until late September. He has played five times since then, four of them as a defensive midfielder.
Fans love Camavinga and want him to get more of the limelight. But Ancelotti has opted not to start him in big games against Borussia Dortmund, Barca and Milan.
(Alberto Gardin/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
He was one of the few players who emerged with credit from Madrid’s latest loss after coming on at half-time: winning four of his seven duels, making four tackles and completing 32 of his 34 passes (a 94 per cent success rate).
The coaching staff see him playing in the middle alongside Federico Valverde or Modric. He is viewed within the club as a different kind of player from Tchouameni. His ability to drive forward and daring style may help improve the team’s fluidity.
Federico Valverde
Valverde has played 12 games as a defensive midfielder this season. The 26-year-old Uruguayan played as an attacking midfielder against Milan but only lasted for the first half.
During the game, messages from his wife Mina Bonino’s X account responded to two followers and criticised their views on her husband’s performance, referencing the position he was playing not being his strongest. A few minutes later, the name, photo and location of Bonino’s account were changed.
Even Ancelotti was asked about it and replied: “It’s complicated to say. I took him off because he had a back problem. He seemed to have recovered but he wasn’t at his best physically.” On Thursday, the club said he had overcome his discomfort.
Valverde took Kroos’ No 8 shirt (Helios de la Rubia/Real Madrid via Getty Images)
Valverde inherited Kroos’ No 8 shirt when he left and Ancelotti has asked him to step up in the German’s absence. He could be paired with Camavinga or Modric as the more attacking of the two central options.
Luka Modric
Fresh from becoming the oldest player in Madrid’s history, the 39-year-old is one of Ancelotti’s main alternatives to lead the midfield.
The Croatian is a more creative player who links play well and the Italian values his competitive spirit in matches and training. But he did suffer against Milan and failed to track back for Morata’s goal.
Modric has played 10 games this season as a defensive midfielder and could be used there again.
The other option is Dani Ceballos, but he has played just 108 minutes this season after a long-term ankle injury. Apart from the second half against Milan, he hasn’t featured much.
(Top photo by Maria Jimenez – Real Madrid/Real Madrid via Getty Images)
