Real Madrid News
Zidane issues Mbappe fitness update, praises Arda Guler ahead of Turkiye vs France: ‘A very great player’
Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane is back in management and is set to take charge of his first match with the France national team tomorrow night.
Having replaced Didier Deschamps as the Les Bleus head coach, Zidane will manage his first game tomorrow against Turkiye in the UEFA Nations League.
Ahead of the match at the Kocaeli Stadium in Izmit, the former Real Madrid player and coach addressed the media in a press conference.
Update on Kylian Mbappe
Leading up to the game, Real Madrid superstar and France captain Kylian Mbappe missed one of the team’s training sessions due to illness.
And, for today’s press conference, Zidane was accompanied by vice-captain Adrien Rabiot instead of the forward, leading to some concerns about his availability for the game tomorrow.
However, Zidane eased those fears, confirming that all was well with Mbappe and that he would be ready to play against Turkiye.
“The obligation is a player and the coach. It was Rabiot today,” he said, as quoted by RMC Sport, when asked about Mbappe’s absence from the press conference.
“Kylian is fine, he had a minor setback but nothing serious, he will be ready to play tomorrow,” he added, issuing an update on the Real Madrid attacker.
During the press conference, Zidane also reflected on his journey with Mbappe, having first noticed him at a trial with Real Madrid back in 2012 to now coaching him with the national team.
“What I saw in him was his potential when he came for his trial at Real Madrid. Everyone was excited about the idea of seeing him play for Real Madrid. It didn’t happen, and we know the rest of the story,” the legendary Frenchman stated.
Praise for Arda Guler
Meanwhile, Zidane also reserved some praise for another Real Madrid player, Arda Guler, who will be coming up against his France team tomorrow.
The Turkish playmaker has made a strong start to the season under Jose Mourinho and Zidane highlighted his personality, saying:
“Arda is a very great player. He has a lot of personality. I’m happy for him and Real Madrid.”
Come tomorrow, it will be Mbappe vs Guler in Turkey, as Zidane prepares to take charge of his first-ever match as the France manager.
Real Madrid’s adventure so far under new coach Jose Mourinho has been far from perfect and this fact shouldn’t be lost even after the team’s brilliant comeback win over AS Roma in midweek.
However, there are areas where Los Blancos have shown a clear improvement under Mourinho, when compared to previous bosses such as Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa.
One of those areas has been set plays, with Real Madrid appearing far more potent from set pieces this season.
A clear improvement from last season
As reported by Diario AS, the three goals in Rome, all from Arda Guler corners inside a seven-minute blitz, were the perfect advert for the work being done at Valdebebas.
Those strikes took Real Madrid’s set-piece tally to seven goals in just ten matches this season. Four of them have come in La Liga, one from a corner and three from free kicks, with the trio in Rome completing the haul.
It is a striking figure when set against last season’s return. Under Alonso and Arbeloa, Madrid managed 12 set-piece goals across the entire campaign, all in La Liga, split evenly between six from corners and six from free kicks.
On current trends, this side looks well placed to surpass that number comfortably.
The reason behind Real Madrid’s improvement
Attacking set pieces are led at Valdebebas by Pedro Machado, with the whole coaching staff involved and Mourinho himself giving the final green light on every routine.
Defending them, meanwhile, falls to Sami Khedira, though it is treated as a collective effort. Mourinho’s appreciation of that teamwork was clear when Bellingham headed in a Guler free kick against Espanyol, prompting the manager to leap up and embrace his assistants.
Machado, one of Mourinho’s most trusted lieutenants, has followed him from Fenerbahce to Benfica and now Madrid, part of a backroom team blending experience with young, ambitious talent.
On the pitch, Guler is the undisputed master when available, his left foot the key weapon, with Bernardo Silva, Trent Alexander-Arnold and even Diomande also trusted to initiate attacks.
Such meticulous strategy has helped Real Madrid turn into a potent side from set-pieces this season.
