Alejandro Moreno knows a thing or two about scoring goals - he won an MLS Golden Boot, after all. He also knows a thing or two about analyzing those who do it - he has been a fixture of the soccer punditry world for more than 10 years.
It's an interesting mix for the ESPN FC's analyst, who spends most of his weekends - and plenty of days in between - breaking down European football in the United States. This season, La Liga, and the ever-dramatic soap opera of Real Madrid, is the focus. Los Blancos made waves by signing Kylian Mbappe on a bumper deal last summer. But it hasn't quite worked out. The French forward is bagging goals, but has he made Madrid markedly better? Moreno is skeptical.
"He's not making them better." he tells GOAL. "I can say that. And that goes beyond what our expectations may have been. Maybe those were unrealistic. But if you take the fact that this team won the league, won the Champions League without Kylian Mbappe, he comes in and the dynamic of the team changes, of course there's gonna be a lot of attention on Kylian Mbappe and his productivity."
It's a bit of a mess up front, the former MLS striker says. It is near-impossible to fit Vinicius Jr, Mbappe, Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham into the same team. Carlo Ancelotti is the man used to figuring these kinds of things out, and Moreno is surprised that he hasn't been able to work his magic.
"But they are as vulnerable now as they were at the beginning of the season, and that's the part that's disappointing," he says. "It's hard to believe that Carlo Ancelotti himself hasn't been able to figure out what to do to give this team structure, balance and organization."
Poor timing, too, as Madrid look towards the Copa del Rey Final against Barcelona, which kicks off Saturday, at 4 p.m. ET, live on ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes, from Estadio Olympic de la Cartuja in Sevilla, Spain. These games usually exist on a knife's edge. For the first time in recent memory, Barca are clear favorites. Moreno, in fact, expects a Barca win.
"It's impossible to ignore what we have seen when Real Madrid and Barcelona have played this season," he says. "It has been so difficult for Real Madrid to defend Barcelona through the midfield and once they get out in transition. There are too many vulnerabilities for Real Madrid."
And he might just be right. Moreno talked all things El Clasico in the latest edition of Mic’d Up, a recurring feature in which GOAL US taps into the perspective of broadcasters, analysts, and other pundits on the state of soccer in the U.S. and abroad.
NOTE: This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
