There is plenty of activity going around in the world of Real Madrid. Lucas Silva and Martin Odegaard are slated to join the club, adding to the wealth of talent the club already possesses. But new entrants means fewer spots for other players, and no player has been more victimized by Madrid's recent transfer policy than Asier Illarramendi. And, by all accounts, the Spaniard is on his way out of the Bernabeu.

But is it a smart move? Should Real Madrid get rid of Illarra after spending so much on him?

Expectations for Illarramendi during the summer of 2013 were that he would be the heir apparent to Xabi Alonso. With the Basque midfielder growing older, the team needed an anchor in the midfield to help structure the team and help it move forward.

At 22, Illarramendi fit that profile well. He had a tremendous year in 2012-13 for Real Sociedad in which he posted terrific defensive numbers, including 3.8 tackles per game, 2.3 interceptions per game, 1.6 fouls per game and 1.6 clearances per game. For some perspective, Xabi Alonso's career average of tackles per game is 3.0 and he managed 3.6 tackles per game just once in his career. His career interceptions per game is 2.2, but that average is skewed by his averaging 3.1 interceptions per game during the 2009-10 season. His career average over fouls per game is 1.6 and he averaged 1.2 clearances per game throughout his career. By all estimations, Illarramendi's stats in his breakout year were comparable and likely to improve under the Basque player's tutelage.

Illarra did not have a poor performance in his first year for Real Madrid. In 29 matches (including just 15 starts), he managed 2.2 tackles per game, 1.3 interceptions per game, 0.8 fouls per game and 0.4 clearances per game. Those numbers were clearly down from his previous season, but a lot of it had to do with his decreased playing time and his adjustment to a new system. But he made some high profile errors throughout the year and wound up losing Carlo Ancelotti's trust.

This year, Illarramendi has gotten even less playing time with only three starts and nine substitutions in Spain and the numbers underlie his lack of confidence. He is averaging just 0.9 tackles per game, 1.2 interceptions per game and 0.8 fouls per game. He has slightly better numbers in the Champions League with 1.6 tackles per game, 1.8 interceptions per game and 0.4 fouls per game, but the sample size is markedly smaller and the competition is not at the same level thus far.

Illarra ranks 12 on the team in tackles per game, but part of that is due to playing time compared to players above him. He is sixth in interceptions per game and seventh in clearances per game, so he has looked solid defensively overall when compared other players.

If defense is not the issue, then is Illarra's departure the result of poor offense? Part of Xabi Alonso's appeal was that he was not only a solid defender, but gifted offensively. He could pick out a long pass from nothing and could also rocket the ball into the net from afar. Illarramendi has never been that good offensively, but he is a solid passer and his work this season reflects that.

He is a solid passer and completes 91.4 percent of his passes, good for fourth on the team and second overall for players with at least 400 minutes of playing time; only Toni Kroos has a higher success rate.

But that is as impressive as it gets. Illarramendi averages two long passes per game, but that is only good for ninth on the team. He averages 0.3 key passes per game; Alonso was good for 1.5 key passes per game throughout his career. Illarramendi is also averaging a little over 30 passes per game; hardly the mark for a defensive midfielder expected to help build the play.

He has two goals for Madrid and one assist throughout his career. Hardly damning statistics, but when his direct competitor for the position Toni Kroos has one goal and seven assists, you know that the Spaniard is in trouble.

Speaking of Kroos, it is essential to look at Illarramendi and why he no longer fits in the squad. Ancelotti's preferred midfield seems to include Kroos, Luka Modric and James Rodriguez. With Isco's emergence, he is the preferred fourth option, meaning that Illarramendi is already relegated to the bench. Throw in Sami Khedira, a perfectly serviceable box to box midfielder -- and the new Silva -- and you have more players that are impeding Illarramendi from getting time.

This is unfortunate, because, when compared with Kroos, Illarramendi actually has better defensive statistics. He is not averaging as many tackles as the German, but he is averaging more interceptions, few fouls and more clearances. Kroos obviously dominates Illarramendi in the passing categories, but the Spaniard is getting dispossessed less than his German teammate and is averaging fewer poor touches per game as well. Those numbers however are skewed by the fact that Kroos actually has more touches and passes per game than Illarramendi so the room for error is far greater.

But even then Illarramendi's defensive numbers are superior to Sami Khedira in every which way and his passing statistics also put Khedira's to shame.

It is a shame that Real Madrid is willing to let the young Spaniard develop his game elsewhere as it is clear from his historical data and even current performance for Los Blancos that he has a lot to offer and could potentially improve with more playing time. However, the competition and the team's incoming transfers mean that someone has to go. He is the chosen one.