Ancelotti’s adamant – but should he switch Vinícius and Mbappé’s Real Madrid positions?

While Vinícius Júnior is performing well on the left, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti still needs to get the best out of Kylian Mbappé as a centre-forward.

With their international breakthrough now over, Real Madrid return to LaLiga action with a visit to 14th-placed Leganés – a highly winnable away match for Los Blancos, even if Butarque is by no means an easy place to go.

By the time they take to the pitch on the outskirts of the Spanish capital on Sunday, Madrid will already know Barcelona's result on matchday 13. The league leaders face a tough visit to Celta Vigo on Saturday – and if Hansi Flick's men in Breaking away from Galicia, Madrid could end the weekend within three points of their arch-rivals, with a game in hand (after their Matchday 12 clash with Valencia was postponed due to the deadly floods on Spain's east coast).

But that all depends on victory in Butarque – where no matter how Carlo Ancelotti lines up his team, the Madrid forward line will undoubtedly feature superstar duo Vinícius Júnior and Kylian Mbappé.

How could Madrid line up against Leganés?

With winger Rodrygo Goes out injured, there appear to be two options open to Madrid's head coach. The visitors could play with four midfielders and two forwards, or keep the 4-3-3 formation that saw them beat Osasuna 4-0 last time out, in their best performance of the season so far. Against the Navarrese, Brahim Díaz came on when Rodrygo was forced off, preserving Madrid's three-man attack. And judging by recent form, Ancelotti would be advised to bring Brahim into an attacking trio again: after all, he scored no fewer than five goals in two games for Morocco during the international break.

Ancelotti is confident he will not change Vinicius and Mbappe's roles

But whatever happens, Mbappé and Vinícius will get the honors in Leganés. And they will line up as they have done all season: with the Brazilian on the left and the Frenchman leading through the middle. This is a topic that has sparked debate: should Ancelotti change things up to allow Mbappé to penetrate from the left, a role he has played to deadly effect for both France and his former club, Paris Saint-Germain? It is a question that continues to be asked, but Ancelotti seems unmoved: he is confident he will not make such a change.

The Italian has been saying this consistently for some time now. In an interview with Spanish TV program El Chiringuito de Jugones at the end of the 2023/24 season, Ancelotti revealed that Vinícius was feeling less comfortable on the left flank after playing more centrally in last year's 4-4-2 season, a formation the Madrid coach had designed to accommodate the arrival of attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham. “I say to Vinicius: you have to be able to play on the left,” said Ancelotti – and after Mbappe's summer signing, the 65-year-old was clear about his plan to deploy the new boy as a striker.

“Fitting Mbappe into the team won't be a problem, he will adapt,” Ancelotti said in July. “What is important is that each player uses his talent and abilities for the benefit of the team. I see him playing in an offense that is pretty fluid. The field is 68 meters wide and we have to cover that space with our attackers.” In August, after Mbappé's first game as Madrid striker, Ancelotti doubled down: 'He is a top player. [central] striker – he is very fast and attacks the space behind the defenders. He doesn't have to play left or right. Ultimately he will score goals.”

And ahead of the win over Osasuna two weeks ago, Ancelotti added: “I have the position of [Vinícius]a player who is a match winner, and because I think Mbappé has all the tools to be one [central] striker. Sometimes they change positions [during games]but I don't want to touch it [their initial positions].”

What are Vinicius and Mbappe's stats for Real Madrid in 2024/25?

So far this season, Vinícius has amply demonstrated the penetration and lethal finishing he offers when cutting in from the left, scoring 12 goals and seven assists in 1,400 minutes of action. But at the same time, this season's numbers also illustrate Mbappe's apparent discomfort at number 9: he has eight goals and just two assists in more than 1,300 minutes of playing time, scoring just once in his last seven appearances.

The solution lies in fluid attacking movement, as Ancelotti has noted, and in mastering the striker's role as quickly as possible. Because as things stand, the boss doesn't appear to be considering a change in the starting position of his star strikers.