Real Madrid coaching staff ready to hand 20-year-old playmaker a leading role | OneFootball

Arda Guler’s rise at Real Madrid is no longer just about potential. 

According to a report from AS, Alvaro Arbeloa and his coaching staff are now seriously considering giving the Turkish playmaker a leading role in the team.

The club are said to be very pleased with his development and believe the time has come to invest more responsibility in him. 

As such, the idea is for him to give him more minutes, more influence, and allow him to grow into a central figure in the squad.

His progress can already be seen in the numbers, as Guler now needs just one more minute to equal his total playing time from last season. 

To put it in perspective, last season, he accumulated 2,197 minutes across 49 matches, and this campaign, he has already reached 2,196 minutes in only 35 games. 

The difference is not just about time on the pitch, but also about importance, as he has moved from being a rotation option to a key part of the team.

Bigger role under Arbeloa

Arda Guler is growing into his role. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Under Arbeloa, he has started six of the last seven matches, and despite rumours suggesting he might be unsettled, the player himself has denied those claims. 

The feeling is that he is happy, improving, and adapting well. The bigger question now is whether he is ready to become one of the main leaders of the team. 

Even so, the coaching staff believe he is capable of growing into that role, as they see him as a player still in development, but one with the qualities to guide the team in the future. 

His recent performance against Valencia only strengthened that belief. 

Guler was the creative hub of the team, producing the highest number of crosses with nine, while also ranking second for passes into the final third with 22. 

Just as important was his work without the ball. In that same match, he led the team in ball recoveries with eight. 

Within the club, the coaching staff is increasingly convinced by what they see and the plan is to keep giving him more responsibility, even if that means accepting mistakes along the way.