One month ago, alarm bells were ringing in full in Madrid; Real weren't dominating every single competition like they were supposed to; the Kylian Mbappe experiment was failing; Carlo out; sell Vini; Jude can't score. Barcelona - younger, more exciting and devoid of cash - had already won the league.
Well, as it turns out, football is a fickle beast; a bad Blaugrana run, a few Madrid wins, and an Intercontinental Cup later, and things suddenly look quite good for Carlo Ancelotti's side. They may not be top of La Liga - that honour currently goes to Atletico Madrid - but they are just one point back. And they absolutely cannot be counted out in the Champions League after snatching a signature away win at Atalanta.
Still, it's a strange January to confront. Madrid have rescued their season, but they don't have the same ceiling as before. Serious knee injuries sustained by Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao have derailed their defence. For once, Madrid might actually have to do a few things in January.
But that doesn't mean they have to spend big, either. Rather, this is a question of tweaking. A couple of loan signings, perhaps, a swing for a big name, and a key free agent decision could be just fine to thrust them back into Europe's elite, both immediately and for the future. GOAL looks at the six moves Los Blancos need to make in what should be an interesting transfer market.