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With only four matches remaining in La Liga this season, Real Madrid's campaign is effectively finished.
Eliminated from the Champions League at the quarterfinal stage and poised to surrender the title to Barcelona, it has been an extremely disappointing year for Los Blancos.
Naturally, many have already shifted their focus to this summer's World Cup, which kicks off on June 11.
The tournament, hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, gives Madrid's players a chance to rescue something from a deeply frustrating season.
National team squads will be announced near the end of the club season and, while several of Real Madrid's key players are certain to represent their countries, others are far from guaranteed a seat on their nation's plane to North America.
Which Real Madrid Players Won't Go to the World Cup?
Among Madrid's 24-man first-team squad, only Andriy Lunin represents a nation (Ukraine) that has failed to qualify for this summer's competition.
A further three players will be absent due to injury—Ferland Mendy (France), Éder Militão and Rodrygo (both Brazil).
Among the remaining players, the likes of Raúl Asencio, Álvaro Carreras, and Gonzalo García have never earned a senior cap for Spain and are extremely unlikely to feature this summer. The same applies to Dani Ceballos, who last appeared for Spain in 2023, and the still uncapped at senior level Gonzalo García.
Real Madrid could have as many as 15 players at this summer's tournament, though the precise number will depend on whether a select group can do enough to earn their national team managers' confidence.
Here are four players battling to secure their place at the World Cup this summer.
Dani Carvajal (Spain)
This season has been far from what was expected for one of the club's most decorated veterans.
Carvajal was appointed club captain last summer as he entered the final year of his deal, hoping for one last glorious chapter in La Liga and the Champions League.
Instead, he has been reduced to a peripheral role in one of the most underwhelming seasons in recent memory.
Carvajal, 34, was left out of Spain's March international squad, with Luis de la Fuente preferring Marcos Llorente and Pedro Porro as his right-back options.
Compounding an already uncertain situation, Carvajal has sustained a foot injury in training, which could further restrict his playing time for the rest of the season.
Despite this, De la Fuente has spoken warmly of the experienced full-back: "Dani is a very important figure in our dressing room. He's a real asset, in every sense of the word."
Trent Alexander-Arnold (England)
While Carvajal still enjoys the support of his national team boss despite form and fitness concerns, Alexander-Arnold's situation is quite different. The former Liverpool man has never been a favourite of England manager Thomas Tuchel.
After a difficult start to his time in Madrid, Alexander-Arnold has begun to show his quality through his passing range and creative influence—though doubts over his defensive reliability persist.
Nevertheless, Alexander-Arnold was left out of Tuchel's extended 35-man squad for the March internationals against Uruguay and Japan, suggesting his chances of making the final cut are slim.
The manager explained his decision: "Everyone is still in the mix. But at the moment, some other guys are just ahead of him."
Tuchel was in attendance for Madrid's 4–3 Champions League quarterfinal second-leg loss to Bayern Munich last month, though whether that performance changed his thinking remains to be seen.
Eduardo Camavinga (France)
It has been a difficult season for Camavinga. The French midfielder has struggled to cement a starting role under either Xabi Alonso or Arbeloa and has even slipped behind 18-year-old Thiago Pitarch in the pecking order.
Arbeloa publicly questioned the former Rennes player's commitment during April's defeat to Mallorca, though he came to his defence following his controversial red card that proved pivotal in the Champions League exit against Bayern.
All indications point towards a summer departure, with several Premier League clubs reportedly interested.
According to reports in France, Camavinga's torrid season could see him drop out of Didier Deschamps's plans, with the midfielder currently ranked sixth in the pecking order behind the likes of N'Golo Kanté, Manu Koné, Adrien Rabiot, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Warren Zaïre-Emery.
Camavinga was named in France's squad for the March internationals but failed to see any action. The 23-year-old has accumulated 29 caps so far.
Franco Mastantuono (Argentina)
The Argentine teenager arrived in the Spanish capital with enormous promise last summer and made an encouraging start under Alonso.
Already a senior international before joining Madrid, Mastantuono holds the distinction of being Argentina's youngest ever debutant, having featured in a World Cup qualifier against Chile at just 17 years and 296 days old.
However, his development has stalled, and the young attacker has become something of an afterthought under Arbeloa.
Mastantuono, who has managed just one goal all season, was criticised by his manager after being sent off for arguing with the referee during the defeat to Getafe, and has been limited to brief substitute appearances in recent months.
Although he did play 45 minutes for Argentina against Mauritania in the most recent international window, there is a growing sense that his prospects of making Lionel Scaloni's final squad are fading rapidly.