Starting as a Defensive Midfielder at Real Madrid

Since his transfer to Manchester United this summer, Ángel Di María had been calling Leon more and more frequently—month after month, their contact only grew.

At first—at least right after signing with United—Di María was genuinely happy.

He’d secured the lucrative contract he wanted, received assurances from Van Gaal that he’d be the core of the team’s offense, and the feeling of playing for the Premier League’s biggest club wasn’t bad at all.

He even called Leon to get a read on the current state of things at United.

Leon responded with a single question:

”Ángel, do you still want to prove yourself at the club level? Or do you want to lead Manchester United to dominate the Premier League?”

Di María’s answer, of course, was a no.

He’d already won every major club honor he could dream of at Real Madrid.

As an integral part of Mourinho’s Madrid, he’d claimed the sextuple and helped secure back-to-back Champions League titles.

He had nothing left to prove—he, like the rest of that Mourinho-era Madrid core, was a certified winner.

Now, he was in the same boat as Higuaín had been when he left Madrid in 2013.

Sure, he still had ambition for major titles—but money took priority now.

After achieving so much success, it was perfectly reasonable to prioritize income and enjoying the game.

His main goal now was to help Argentina win the World Cup.

That heartbreaking loss in Brazil this past summer, so close to glory yet so far, still weighed heavily on every Argentine player and fan.

Aside from that, there really weren’t many things left that could truly ignite Di María’s desire to push himself to the limit.

He and Leon were close friends and often chatted privately, so Di María was honest—he didn’t feel the need to sugarcoat anything.

Once Leon understood Di María’s current mindset, he simply laughed and said,

”Then United’s a good fit for you. Just relax, focus on your personal stats, and don’t worry about anything else.”

At the time, Di María didn’t quite get what Leon meant.

But now, after ten games into the season, he fully understood.

United wasn’t just a mess—it was a full-blown disaster.

Di María deeply regretted not researching the club’s situation more thoroughly before signing the contract.

But after the early-season tactical chaos, and with Leon’s continued pep talks, he came to accept reality.

At least the paychecks and bonuses were real. Cold, hard cash.

Who cared if the club’s management was a circus, the training facilities outdated, and the manager’s tactics bizarre?

He’d take the money, protect his health, and rack up some numbers. Early retirement, here I come.

Now more relaxed than ever, Di María often joked with Leon during their calls.

”Seriously, when you guys come to Old Trafford, please don’t humiliate us too badly. If your boss [Mourinho] hands us a disaster-class loss at home, the media will roast us alive for a month…”

Leon chuckled at Di María’s self-deprecation and replied calmly,

”Don’t worry, there won’t be a disaster. At most, a small win. I promise~”

Di María didn’t believe a word of it. But Leon kept repeating the same phrase, mysteriously vague, making him even more suspicious.

Fortunately, the international break was just around the corner, so Di María shelved his club frustrations for the time being.

As continental qualifiers and friendlies kicked off across the globe,

the world’s top players suited up for their countries, only to return ten days later with battered bodies.

Which meant top clubs across Europe—especially those near the top of their leagues—were about to suffer.

Injuries and fatigue piled up as media outlets everywhere tallied up the damage.

Chelsea wasn’t spared either. De Bruyne, Ibrahimović, Azpilicueta, Matic…

As Mourinho looked at the list of recommended rest candidates—which included nearly half his key players—he could only curse under his breath.

Then he got to work on the rotation plan for the next few matches.

It was an unavoidable problem: the better Chelsea performed in the Premier League and Champions League, the more their national team stars got called up and played heavy minutes.

Mourinho had long since gotten used to this back in his Real Madrid days.

Luckily, this Chelsea side had enough depth, and the central spine was still intact:

Terry and Leon—two starters without international duty—would anchor the team.

Drogba could fill in for Ibrahimović and still offer a strong tactical focal point.

As long as the defense held, Leon could shoulder the added attacking burden in the next two matches—against Crystal Palace and Maribor.

Leon was more than used to Mourinho’s ”motivational” speeches this time of year.

Every international break, it was the same story.

After all, Leon was the only core player in the squad without national team duties.

If he didn’t step up, others would have to risk injury by continuing to start.

The more capable one does more work—that’s just how it was. Leon had long since accepted that.

He gave Mourinho a familiar look, one that said, ”Relax, boss. I got this.”

To lead both attack and defense.

It sounded impressive, glamorous even—but in practical terms, it meant Leon would be carrying a double tactical load.

Especially in these upcoming games against weaker sides.

If Chelsea went too heavy on offense and the opponent nicked a goal on the counter, they’d just sit back and park the bus the rest of the match.

Van Ginkel had the ability to play as a lone pivot, but he was still young.

After Leon himself suggested it, Mourinho moved Leon back into the defensive midfield.

Against weaker teams, even with a rotated attack, Chelsea’s offensive quality was still more than enough.

And if necessary, Leon could always make late runs into the box to support the attack.

But defensively, you couldn’t cut corners.

With Leon anchoring the back, Mourinho felt completely at ease resting both Kroos and De Bruyne.

On October 18th, after a two-week break, the Premier League resumed.

At Selhurst Park, Crystal Palace hosted Chelsea in the eighth round of the Premier League.

To the surprise of most pundits, Mourinho fielded a rock-solid 4-2-3-1 formation.

Leon was positioned deep in midfield, and the attention Chelsea paid to Palace’s threat left the home fans feeling flattered.

Even with a rotated squad, the names on Chelsea’s teamsheet were enough to kill any hopes of an upset.

”Chelsea’s starting keeper today is Petr Čech.

In defense, it’s Terry and Kalas at center-back, Ake on the left, Ivanović on the right.

Leon and Van Ginkel anchor the midfield, with Lampard ahead of them.

On the wings: Lukaku on the left, Salah on the right, and leading the line—The Beast himself, Drogba.”

After introducing both starting lineups, the Sky Sports commentator turned to his guest analyst to discuss just how strong this Chelsea rotation really was.

In the end, the commentators offered a fairly cautious assessment:

”Chelsea’s rotation lineup is probably strong enough to finish top eight in the Premier League. A bit stronger than Stoke City, slightly weaker than Everton…”

Honestly, that was a very conservative take.

At least the Everton fans watching this early kickoff probably didn’t feel confident their squad could beat this version of Chelsea’s second string.

Crystal Palace approached this match very carefully, knowing full well that Chelsea had come in with a defense-first mindset.

Despite having home advantage, Palace didn’t go for aggressive attacking from the start.

Even their probing attacks were hesitant—as if they were the ones playing at Stamford Bridge instead of Selhurst Park.

Such a conservative game plan naturally didn’t generate many chances for Palace.

Chelsea, meanwhile, didn’t seem in a rush at all.

Leon, positioned as the left defensive midfielder, seemed unusually interested in his one-on-one duels with Palace’s starting right winger—Wilfried Zaha.

The young ”Zha Ball King” had taken a detour to Manchester United in the winter of 2013, where he was largely forgotten and misused.

But thanks to his agent’s efforts, he had returned to his boyhood club on loan this summer.

Back in a stable environment, Zaha had blossomed—rising from a rotation option to a regular starter on the right.

His explosive pace and confidence on the ball made him Palace’s most dangerous wide threat.

But today, with Leon shadowing him, Zaha barely made an impact.

He didn’t even get a chance to properly challenge Chelsea’s young left-back, Nathan Aké.

Leon kept stepping in early, cutting off Zaha before he could even reach the final third.

Zaha never intended to engage Leon in direct physical duels—he knew where his strengths lay.

But after repeatedly failing to shake off Leon, no matter how many sudden cuts or bursts of pace he tried,

he realized: Palace were in big trouble today.

Sure enough, once Leon neutralized Zaha completely, Palace were left relying on Bolasie down the left.

But Bolasie, for all his height and strength, couldn’t get past Van Ginkel and Ivanović, who matched him physically at every turn.

With both flanks shut down, Palace had run out of ideas.

And in set-piece situations, they had no edge over Chelsea whatsoever.

So, as the first half wore on, Chelsea gradually seized control of the tempo.

With Drogba up top acting as a dominant pivot, the Blues’ attacks began to flow with ease.

Still, Palace’s defensive discipline was admirable.

They didn’t make any big mistakes and managed to hold Chelsea to a goalless first half.

At the break, Mourinho made a tactical adjustment:

He swapped Leon and Lampard’s positions, moving Leon higher up the pitch.

Just ten minutes into the second half, Leon’s late runs produced two chances from long shots—both of which earned Chelsea corners.

On the second corner, it was Ivanović who rose like a god descending from the heavens,

planting his hands on Palace center-back Hangeland’s shoulders and unleashing a thundering lion’s-head header!

Keeper Speroni didn’t even have time to react. Ivanović’s rocket went straight into the net!

Chelsea’s morale soared.

But Leon remained calm.

After signaling a tactical gesture to Mourinho, he swapped positions with Lampard again and dropped back into the holding role.

The change didn’t go unnoticed by Palace players, who immediately assumed Mourinho had made the call.

They had no idea it was Leon’s own decision—frustrated, some even began cursing Mourinho in their heads.

But after trying to force their way through Chelsea’s midfield a few more times,

even the most hopeful Palace fans—and plenty of neutrals watching—felt a creeping sense of despair.

In the 68th minute, Leon made two successful tackles in just ten seconds,

shutting down one of Palace’s rare counterattacks all on his own.

The Sky Sports commentator couldn’t help but marvel:

”Who the best attacking midfielder or the best defensive midfielder in the world is…

depends entirely on whether Leon feels like playing higher or deeper on any given day.”

It was an outrageous claim.

But much like how prime Philipp Lahm was once considered the best fullback in the world regardless of which side he played,

Leon had now reached that same level of universal recognition.

Stats and eye test—Leon had both.

In high-stakes matches, there was no doubt: he was the most dominant midfielder in world football.

At least after watching today’s Premier League match, no fan could deny that his defensive coverage and ball-winning were terrifyingly effective.

In the end, Chelsea came away with a narrow 1–0 win at Selhurst Park.

But in terms of match control, they’d dominated the second half entirely.

After the game, Crystal Palace manager Tony Pulis summed up his feelings with a single word: despair.

”I’d rather lose 1–4 or 2–5.

Leon’s defensive performance today was sheer torture—for me, my players, and every Palace fan in the stadium.

He’s the strongest central defensive player I’ve ever seen.

The only blessing? We didn’t get to see ’Tyrant Leon’ in attack today. In that sense, we were lucky…”

Pulis’s glowing praise sparked backlash in the media.

Many accused him of trying to deflect blame for his own tactical failures.

Even some Palace fans thought he was just making excuses.

But just three days later, when Chelsea hosted Maribor in the third round of the Champions League group stage…

That noise disappeared.

Because Leon unleashed himself—three goals, two assists.

A personal five-goal contribution that completely tore Maribor’s midfield and backline to shreds.

Sure, Maribor weren’t European giants.

But Chelsea had fielded a rotated squad—and still produced a 7–0 demolition.

And let’s not forget: Maribor weren’t pushovers.

In the first two rounds, they had drawn with both Sporting CP and Schalke 04.

Yet against Chelsea, they couldn’t even get out of their half.

Leon’s 3+2 performance, in light of the previous results in the group, became even more convincing.

The nickname Pulis had casually coined—Tyrant Leon—instantly went viral.

And now, everyone believed it.

After all, Crystal Palace had only lost 0–1 to Chelsea.

In hindsight… they were lucky.

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