Real Madrid's season is essentially ended with their 4-0 loss to Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal, even if La Liga doesn't conclude until the weekend of June 3.
With four games remaining, Barcelona was declared the league's champion last weekend, leaving Carlo Ancelotti's team 14 points behind. Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are vying for second place, but they already have a certain spot in the Spanish Super Cup after defeating Osasuna in the Copa del Rey final last month.
The pro-Madrid press predicted that the team would win six trophies this year, but ultimately, they only won the Copa del Rey, the UEFA Super Cup, and the World Club Cup, which they won after defeating Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia and Al Ahly of Egypt, according to Xinhua.
Real Madrid and club president Florentino Perez will always consider the Champions League to be the most important trophy, but this season they have come up painfully short as Manchester City dominated them at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night. If not for goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who played despite having an injured arm, the defeat might have been even more painful.
When questioned on Wednesday about his future, Ancelotti reiterated that he was certain he would go on and that his future should be safe given that he has the players' backing and has been able to maintain harmony in the Madrid locker room.
But until Perez formally confirms Ancelotti for another year, there will be skepticism at a team where finishing second is seen as a failure.
Ancelotti's future status may be in question, but there will undoubtedly be some adjustments. There will probably be some significant additions this summer as a result of the fact that City completely controlled the midfield and rendered Karim Benzema into a shell of his former self in attack.
Older midfielders Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, who are 37 and 33 years old, respectively, were unable to keep up with City's pressing and mobility, while second-half replacement Dani Ceballos also struggled to make an impact.
At the end of June, all three of their contracts expire, and Ceballos' recent play suggests he will be leaving. Although it has been reported that Kroos and Modric have struck an agreement to remain at the Santiago Bernabeu for another year, nothing has been made official, and Wednesday night may bring about a change for one or both of the players.
Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni, who joined Real Madrid in the last two summers, are two notable examples of young players the club has acquired. It seems that the team will now spend a lot of money to add England international Jude Bellingham to the center of the park.
The recent play of Benzema must also be a major source of worry, as the 35-year-old is now clearly beginning to show his age. Another player whose contract expires in June is the striker. Although it's difficult to envision the team letting him go, they obviously need to add backup players.
Direct replacement for Benzema Mariano Diaz, who has never been a part of Ancelotti's plans, will also be leaving. Marco Asensio, who is more of a second striker than a player to lead the line, also has a contract that ends in June and is receiving offers to leave to clubs where he would see more action, and he also has a contract that expires in June.
Eden Hazard, who continues to be a club fixture and consumes a significant portion of salary, is completely unable to recapture the form that won him a transfer from Chelsea.
Real Madrid will thus have to spend money on top-tier forwards in addition to midfielders. Alvaro Rodriguez, a B-team player, has a lot of potential but is still extremely young.
Can we anticipate another summer of Kylian Mbappe rumors? Madrid will have a very busy summer with new contracts, departures, and some high-profile additions, regardless of what happens.
