Arda Güler and Bernardo Silva ask for a place

The match against Roma showed thatJosé Mourinho has a very clear idea of what his preferred midfield should look like. The Portuguese coach once again opted for the double pivot formed by Fede Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni. The result was disappointing, to the point that, in the first half, the player chosen to start the play for Madrid was neither the Uruguayan nor the Frenchman. That task fell to Thibaut Courtois, who, positioned between the center-backs, attempted up to 19 long passes, more than the two players theoretically responsible for giving meaning to Madrid's play. 

It didn't work, neither in the first half nor at the start of the second, when Roma, through Malen, built a two-goal cushion (3-1) that seemed to put the match to bed. Seeing it slipping away, Mou overhauled his starting eleven, first bringing on Arda Güler (59th minute) and later Bernardo Silva (70'). The Turk's introduction moved Valverde to right-back, a position in which he had already been decisive against Villarreal. The Portuguese came on directly for Tchouaméni, forming a radically different double pivot from the one that started the match. With Arda and Bernardo, Madrid took control of the ball and ended up coming back thanks to two direct assists from the Turk, who also played an active role in Espí's goal. 

The Valencian forward and Endrick were the other positive notes of Los Blancos' response. Both scored and brought a sense of danger to the Roman side's box, something that Vinicius was once again far from providing, despite starting barely a couple of hours after learning of his four-match suspension in the league. The Brazilian, along with Dumfries, was the first player withdrawn by his coach, in a radical tactical shake-up that ultimately proved worth three very valuable points at the Olimpico. 

'Despite the team's radical change with the introductions of Arda and Bernardo, Mou resisted in the press conference any suggestion of continuing with that idea. And he did so emphatically. "If we start the way we finished, they'll put five past us. There are moments and moments. I had substitutions to make. They were going to get tired, the cards were going to come," said the Madrid coach when asked about the change in script brought about by his substitutions in Rome. Statements that seem to reinforce his idea of opting for a more physical, less technical midfield in the upcoming matches, starting with Sunday's one against Sevilla. '

Moreover, one of the keys to that possible change of system lies in Fede Valverde's position. In the last two matches, the Uruguayan has had more influence on the game from full-back than in midfield. An old debate that has been circulating at Real Madrid for some time, despite the fact that the player openly opposed a change of position about a year ago, still with Xabi Alonso as Madrid's coach. 

On Wednesday, Madrid's captain was less reluctant to the idea. "The important thing is to win, as the coach said. If things go well, you have to keep moving forward and I’m happy to keep getting minutes wherever it may be, I really enjoy playing, I had a lot of space to run down the wing and I’m grateful that the coach continues to trust me and I will give my all for the team," said Valverde, whose change of position had been ruled out by Mourinho before the Rome match. "If you have more than one Fede, you make him play at full-back, in midfield... But since we only have one Fede, seeing him at full-back is something very specific," said the man from Setúbal.

A possible change of position for Fede would leave a spot open in midfield, opening the door to a midfield with more control and less muscle. The formula that worked in Rome, in a desperate situation that Madrid got out of thanks to Güler and Bernardo, two footballers pushing for a place at Madrid. The ball is in Mou's court.