Just where is Nuri Sahin? Are the Turkish midfielder’s injury problems still haunting him, or is his absence from the Santiago Bernabeu spectacle due to non-footballing matters?
Sahin took the Bundesliga by storm last season, helping Borussia Dortmund win their first league title in nine years, and in the process, was voted the Bundesliga Player of the Season. The midfielder played in all except four of Dortmund’s league games last term and bagged six goals and eight assists as eyes from across Europe were cast in his direction. Sadly, his appearances in a Real Madrid shirt this season have been limited to around the number of digits on one hand.
After much fanfare following his arrival for a presumed bargain €10M fee, Merengue supporters were promised the apparent heir to Xabi Alonso in midfield, a player that had the ability to deliver meticulous passes from deep inside his own half. Yet injuries would soon haunt him as he was deprived of participation in Real Madrid’s successful pre-season tour.
In fact, Los Blancos’ faithful had to wait about five months before seeing the sensational young Turk in action. On 6th November 2011, Sahin made his Bernabeu bow in the 7-1 thrashing of Osasuna on the 66th minute mark. The score was already 6-1 in favour of his side. Maybe the numbers told a story for Sahin despite his bright predicted future at Real Madrid; 6th November, 66th minute.
He would go on to make two appearances in the Champions League against Dinamo Zagreb and Ajax – both matches were won comfortably by his team – and a further two appearances in the Copa del Rey against Ponferradina in December. Since then, Sahin has appeared just once for the Whites, in the recent 5-1 win over Real Sociedad.
It is safe to conclude that Sahin is on the periphery of Jose Mourinho’s team. With no proper pre-season under his belt, the midfielder lacks match sharpness and form. He has only featured when the occasion counted little for Los Blancos, mainly in cup matches and meaningless Champions League group stage fixtures. Indeed, the word from the Spanish capital is that the 23-year-old has yet to show Mourinho the maturity which suggests he can boss a Los Blancos midfield unit.
An exit from the Bernabeu seemed likely at one point in the previous transfer window, with all the signs pointing to Real Madrid being willing to offer him a temporary leave of absence in the form of a loan. However, Mourinho himself vetoed any exit for the former Feyenoord star – as he has done too this season for Esteban Granero and Raul Albiol, players who have, like Sahin, received little playing time so far –, and publicly declared his intent to keep Sahin at his new home.
“Sahin is an option we have to replace Xabi Alonso”, revealed Mourinho recently. "He has made progress in the last few weeks. He has to keep up the good work and show he is a true professional. He will stay here next season and more is expected of him. We have faith in him. Rumours about him leaving are just rumours."
The Real Madrid number 5 might have seen more of the dugout than the pitch, but there is nothing wrong with him physically, according to Turkey boss Abdullah Avci, who included the player in his starting line-up against Slovakia at the end of last month.
Asked about the player’s club status, Avci declared that his selection was not down to a lack of match fitness. “Of course I have talked to him about his situation. He continues to have confidence that can bring much to Madrid, but obviously he is not going through the most enjoyable spell. Still, he feels great, he is in excellent physical condition. Mourinho signed Sahin for five seasons, not five months. He requires patience and he will soon have the role we all want him to have."
Avci might have a different view to Mourinho over just how ready Sahin is for top level football, but the outcome remains the same: the mercurial 23 year-old is a frozen asset in the Spanish capital. Xabi Alonso continues to be an important fixture in the Madrid starting eleven: He is the third most used player by his manager after club captain Iker Casillas and talisman Cristiano Ronaldo.
And the side have found the perfect winning formula with their current starting eleven, marching to an eleven-game winning streak between December and March, before drawing recently against Malaga and Villarreal. With Real Madrid topping La Liga by six points ahead of Barcelona, and looking likely to win their first league title in four years, as well as in a good position in the Champions League, it is a safe bet that Mourinho will not be changing his regular team-sheet any time soon. As the old saying goes, “if it is not broken, why fix it?”.
Sadly for Sahin, he seems to be a victim of his team’s on-pitch success, as he finds himself currently at the bottom of Real Madrid’s midfield pecking order, behind the likes of Alonso, Sami Khedira, Lassana Diarra and Esteban Granero. Mourinho still insists on counting the playmaker in his plans for next season, but should Real Madrid’s good form continue, his situation at the club is not expected to change. And then the pressure may come from Sahin himself for a spell of regular first team football, be that at the Bernabeu or elsewhere.
