Today Bellingham was deployed as a 10, this is a place I have always been critical of him not having that quality, he managed to do well there last season simply because of Toni Kroos been in the team, but without him they look lost there, I think against bigger opponents Ancelotti Should play either modric or the young Arder Guler there as a 10 and give Bellingham a no 8 role instead
It won't be easy to get over the fact that Toni Kroos has retired, this is their first official match after it and so this are expected outcome though Jude still did well especially from the fact that he was still the man of the match I think Federico Valverde might be able to do better in that position with time there, Ancelotti knows this and believes on Federico Valverde while when Arder Guler or Modric plays he may switch or still plays 10
I also feel that something is missing from Real Madrid's game and apparently, that was the impact of Toni Kross not being there. Toni Kroos has always been the conductor of the game during his time at Real Madrid and his role is very crucial because Real Madrid not only can dictate the tempo, but with the vision and creativity he has, it provides plenty of opportunities for his teammates to score.
I think Luka Modric can play the role of no.8 but unfortunately he is not young anymore, and probably won't be at Real Madrid for long.
I actually thought I was the only one seeing that last night, because real Madrid wasn't playing as the real madrid I know, especially against an inferior opposition like Atalanta, no disrespect to them, but the absence of Toni Kross makes things difficult to click yesterday and to be honest, if a reliable replacement of Toni Kross isn't found, they will definitely struggled against the bigger boys.
Secondly, you are very much correct when you said that Luka modric is the only one in the team who can also play that position very well, but my question is can he be able to play a complete match against a top team that plays with high intensity considering his current age?
Though some people will argue that camavinga can also be utilize in that position, but in my own perspective, he can't brings the quality of play toni Kross brings to the table as a deep lying playmaker, so till that is fix, I see real madrid struggling against the bigger boys if not is done about it.