Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has asked the club to sign another high-quality centre-back after discovering he has no senior player in that position available for the team’s first pre-season friendly against Fiorentina.
The request comes as the Spanish club’s defensive injury problems continue into a third season, leaving Mourinho with limited options before preparations for the new campaign have properly begun.
The centre-back position has been a major weakness for Real Madrid since the 2024-25 season, when three of the club’s key defenders suffered serious injuries within a short period.
Eder Militao was the first to be affected, tearing his anterior cruciate ligament and damaging the meniscus in his knee in November 2024. David Alaba and Antonio Rudiger followed at the end of that campaign, both suffering injuries to the meniscus in their left knees just days apart.
Those setbacks forced former manager Carlo Ancelotti to improvise. Aurelien Tchouameni was used at centre-back at different stages, while Raul Asencio was promoted from Castilla and teenager Jacobo Ramon was also given an opportunity.
The situation did not improve during the following season, despite efforts to strengthen the club’s medical structure. Real Madrid appointed Nico Mihic as its new medical supervisor at the start of January, only days before Xabi Alonso left the club.
Militao then suffered another setback, sustaining a serious hamstring tear that required surgery. He remains in rehabilitation and is not expected to return for several months.
Alaba has endured a series of further problems involving his calf, while Rudiger spent about two months out with muscular pain and knee issues. The Germany international travelled to London for specialist treatment before beginning a carefully managed rehabilitation programme involving injections and closely monitored physical work.
Although Rudiger eventually returned to action, his fitness still needs to be managed and he cannot be expected to play a heavy schedule of matches.
New signing Dean Huijsen has also been affected by injury problems. The young defender missed 13 matches during his first season with Real Madrid because of fitness issues and is now unavailable again because of discomfort.
That leaves Mourinho facing his first major challenge at the start of his new Real Madrid project. Huijsen has remained in the Spanish capital, while Asencio has suffered a rectus femoris injury that is expected to keep him out for four to six weeks, ruling him out of the entire pre-season period.
Ibrahima Konate has not yet joined the squad because he was given time off after taking part in the World Cup. He is expected to return on Sunday. Rudiger only came back a few days ago and still needs time to regain full match fitness, while Militao continues his lengthy recovery.
As a result, Mourinho is expected to use the young pairing of Lamine Fati and Joan Martinez in central defence against Fiorentina. The two players formed Castilla’s centre-back partnership last season as the team competed for promotion.
The match will offer both defenders an important chance to demonstrate their ability, but their involvement also highlights the scale of Real Madrid’s problems in the position.
According to Spanish newspaper Marca, Mourinho has told the club’s hierarchy that a new centre-back is required despite the signing of Konate.
The Portuguese coach is understood to have believed since arriving in Madrid that the position needed a top-level addition, particularly because of the continuing doubts over the physical condition of the defenders already at the club.
However, Real Madrid would need to make room in the squad and raise funds before completing another deal. Raul Asencio is regarded as the leading candidate to leave during the summer.
The club wants to sell Asencio to create space and help finance the arrival of a world-class defender. His latest injury could affect the timing of a possible transfer, but it is not expected to significantly alter Real Madrid’s plans.
August is set to be a decisive month. The club’s defensive future will depend on whether it can finally resolve an issue that has remained unresolved for more than two years and bring stability to a back line repeatedly disrupted by injuries.
