Isco falls by the wayside
From starter status to reserve, Isco, who started the season stockpiling goals, praise, applause and headlines, has become the main casualty of Ancelotti's formation change and his definitive choice of the 4-3-3.
While 'Carletto' was flirting with a variety of systems over the course of the first eight games, Isco was a mainstay in the starting line-up; since he decided on a tactical change against FC Copenhagen, the Golden Boy has been a regular on the bench.
The former Málaga player, with the impetus of a summer break cut short by the Under-21s European Championships, hit the ground running to start the season. His spectacular form helped justify the sale of Özil. "With Isco and Bale, there's no place for Özil", was the word from the offices at the Bernabéu.
Isco scored 4 goals in the first five games of the season. He had the Bernabéu at his feet. He was on course to be a contender for the 'Pichichi' (top league goalscorer), but he began to run out of steam. He has not scored since the fifth league game of the season, against Getafe at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, and has now gone seven consecutive league games without hitting the target. His last full match came a week earlier, against Villarreal on 14th September.
Isco's performance statistics look even worse for the Champions League. The Golden Boy scored in Turkey against Galatasaray, in his continental competition debut with Real Madrid, but he has only played 105 minutes out of a possible total of 360.
