Arda Guler’s World Cup heartbreak comes with silver lining for Real Madrid

The midfielder Arda Guler was one of the very few players who deservedly escaped criticism after the failures of the last two years at Real Madrid. The Turkish international has gradually improved his game to become a regular starter at the Merengue team, and has also avoided being involved in any controversy despite all the troubles surrounding the white dressing room last season.

The still young midfielder also had one of his best games in the white shirt last season, as he scored two amazing goals in the quarter-finals against Bayern Munich.

As a result, there were very high hopes associated with him as he got Turkey back into the World Cup. However, unfortunately, his team has already been eliminated from the competition, after having suffered two losses in their two group stage games. There is no doubt that Guler would be dejected and desolate after this failure.

Still, there is a silver lining attached to his failure at the World Cup. As Diario AS has noted, he would be facing another crucial 2026-27 season at Real Madrid, and this early elimination from the World Cup would allow him to join the preseason training at the earliest, and gain an advantage over some of his other teammates.

Turkey are set to play their last game in the World Cup, against the United States on June 25th, and after this date, the midfielder would be on vacation. Thus, depending on the number of holidays he gets, he can join the preseason training, which starts on July 13th, at the end of its first week or at the start of its second week.

In the upcoming season, he would have to compete with a midfielder as complete as Bernardo Silva and also adapt to a new manager, Jose Mourinho. Being able to join training before most other first team players would undoubtedly help Arda Guler prove his qualities to the new Real Madrid manager and start the new season on the right note.