Eliminated by Bayern Munich (1-2, 3-4) in the Champions League quarter-finals, Real Madrid is now heading straight for a season without a single trophy. A rare situation for a club accustomed to hoarding titles. A truly barren season, for real this time?

For Kylian Mbappé, there will be no consolation prize with secondary titles. The French striker could, for the first time in a decade, finish a club campaign without winning anything. Knocked out prematurely from the European stage, Real Madrid appears condemned to a year of failure—an anomaly for an institution of this calibre.

Barring an improbable turnaround in La Liga, Los Blancos look set to come up empty-handed. Sitting second in the table behind their Catalan rivals, they trail leaders FC Barcelona by nine points, with Barça firmly installed at the top and well on course to retain their title. This situation is reminiscent of the 2020-2021 season, the only other campaign without a major trophy in the last sixteen years.

The failures have piled up this season. Beaten by Barça in the Spanish Super Cup final (2-3), the Madrid side were then eliminated in the Copa del Rey round of 16 by second-division club Albacete.

On the European stage, as last year against Arsenal, Real faltered again in the quarter-finals, unable to compete with the continent's elite.

In this context, the future of the Madrid project is under scrutiny. Arriving in the summer of 2024, Mbappé has so far only added a European Super Cup and an Intercontinental Cup to his trophy cabinet, a haul deemed insufficient given the club's ambitions.

On the bench, manager Álvaro Arbeloa refused to look ahead. "Now is not the time to talk about my future. I just want to help the club until the end," he stated, aware of the disappointment surrounding this season's conclusion.

Consequently, the question of a rebuild looms. The transfer market could be turbulent, especially as some recent signings have yet to meet expectations. Adjustments will be essential for Real Madrid to reclaim its status and reconnect with its historic demand: to win, always.

Babacar SENE