Güler takes advantage of his chance at Madrid - does he deserve to play more?

The Turkish midfielder played against Osasuna as Real Madrid won comprehensively. Again, he took his chance well and shone in the white shirt.

The murmur around Arda Güler is starting to become a rumble. In fact, it’s more than a rumble, it’s a roar, a unanimous thought: Güler deserves more minutes at Real Madrid. Because while he has waited for the door to open, the light of his magic wand has been shining bright. There is magic there, you can sense, feel and, when he gets the chance, definitely see it.

That is why the overwhelming feeling that “the boy” - as he is affectionately called at Real Madrid’s Valdebebas training ground - should be playing more. He is an enormous talent that is being wasted because of his lack of experience at the very top.

Note: more experience is not synonymous with better performance. Sometimes youthful hunger eats up everything in its path. But for that, you have to have trust. Being risky can bring success.

And that’s what is missing with Güler: real opportunities. At 19-years-old, he has only played 98 official minutes, less than Nico Paz (127). He has participated in seven games and only started one, the Copa del Rey tie against Arandina.

Taking away that game, he has played 39 official minutes in the remaining 40 matches (8 Champions League games, 29 LaLiga games, an extra round of the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup). The mathematics, therefore, are simple: every time Ancelotti puts him on the field, it’s for six and a half minutes.

And yet, in that tiny sample size, Güler has been able to demonstrate that his boots are filled with talent. The dressing room describes his left foot as “incredible” and at the club they continue to lick their lips at the diamond they have found.