By Jack Gallagher
After literal years of speculation, Kylian Mabppe finally completed his long-awaited move to Real Madrid this week.
The French superstar has arrived at Los Blancos as a free agent following the expiration of his deal at Paris Saint-Germain, putting pen to paper on a five-year deal at the Santiago Bernabeu.
So now that the move has officially been confirmed, attention has now turned to how Madrid plan to fit Mbappe into their already La Liga and Champions League-winning forward line filled with world class talent such as Jude Bellingham, Rodrygo Goes and Ballon d'Or favourite Vinicius Junior.
Here are Carlo Ancelotti's tactical options...
Replacing Rodrygo
Jude Bellingham
Vinicius Junior - Kylian Mbappe
Ancelotti's 4-3-1-2 set-up was the key to all of Madrid's success during the 2023/24 season. The system allowed them to, miraculously, not miss Ballon d'Or-winning captain Karim Benzema who departed during the 2023 summer window, while also getting the best out of new signing Jude Bellingham.
Deploying the England international in a false nine role behind two forwards keen to drift out wide proved to be a masterstroke, and led to Bellingham netting a career-best return of 24 goals and 11 assists in all competitions.
The system also enabled Ancelotti to get the best out of his wide players Vinicius and Rodrygo as de-facto strikers too. The pair combined for a stunning tally of 41 goals and 26 assists in all competitions, with Vinicius impressing so much in the latter stages of the UEFA Champions League that he is now the favourite to win the Ballon d'Or.
Having won La Liga and the Champions League using the 4-3-1-2 system, it would be hard to argue against Ancelotti using it once again next season.
The issues with utilising this system, however, is the tricky decision of who to drop. Vinicius and Bellingham are contenders for the Ballon d'Or and are the faces of the club right now, which leaves Rodrygo - one of the best players in the world - as the unlucky player who'd be sacrificed.
It'd be harsh, but Mbappe would certainly be an upgrade on Rodrygo.
Dropping Bellingham deeper
Jude Bellingham
Rodrygo Goes - Kylian Mbappe - Vinicius Junior
If Ancelotti doesn't want to drop Rodrygo from the starting XI, moving Bellingham deeper into midfield and starting Mbappe as a number nine may be the way to go.
90min's Harry Symeou certainly thinks so, saying: "Personally, I'd sacrifice one of the midfielders, drop Jude Bellingham into a slightly more deeper position and go with the front three of Vinicius Junior from the left, Rodrygo from the right, and Kylian Mbappe playing down the middle.
"Perhaps there would be less space for Jude Bellingham to roam into, but his game has got so much more to it than just his ability to finish chances.
"Vinicius Junior, for me, should not under any circumstances be moved out of position, but Kylian Mbappe has to play.
"You might be thinking 'no way, you can't sacrifice Jude Bellingham's ability to get forward when Rodrygo doesn't contribute as many goals as he does', but I would say that a lot of Rodrygo's work goes under the radar. There's a reason why Carlo Ancelotti seems to pick him week in, week out."
Fitting everyone in
Rodrygo Goes - Jude Bellingham - Vinicius Junior
Endrick - Kylian Mbappe
As well as signing the best player in the world this summer, Madrid are also set to welcome a young Brazilian who could well be the next best player in the world too in Endrick.
The youngster is one of the most exciting young talents in world football, and is set to join Madrid having now turned 18.
If Ancelotti wants to, somehow, fit Endrick and Mbappe into his lineup without dropping any of his current stars, then playing a five-pronged ultra-attacking lineup is the only way it's possible. The issue with this, of course, is the volume of work it would leave one of Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni or Eduardo Camavinga in the middle of the park.
In theory, it would never work, but we'd love to see it in practice just to be sure.
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This article was originally published on 90min.com as How Real Madrid's attack will line-up with Kylian Mbappe.
