Real Madrid News
Carlo Ancelotti sets goals target for the season for Federico Valverde
Carlo Ancelotti has a much bigger role to play behind Federico Valverde’s resurgence than he receives. For some who was a subject of a club-record bid made by Liverpool, a return of three goals and two assists in limited appearances this season is something to budge an eye on.
More importantly, his recent UEFA Champions League heroics against RB Leipzig where he opened the scoring in a 2-0 win was sparingly commendable. That because he was deployed as a make-shift winger despite having Marco Asensio on the pitch, who by the way played in a midfield three.
It must be remembered that it was not so long ago that Valverde’s Real Madrid career was on a decline to an extent that he had lost his place to a 19-year-old Eduardo Camavinga.
Back then, lack of consistency and growing injury concerns had affected his performance big time. As it turns out, he put in the hard work and got himself in the thick of things, playing a big role in his side’s Champions League glory.
He was instrumental in Madrid’s comeback wins over Paris-Saint Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City before laying an assist to Vinicius Jr’s only goal in the final against Liverpool.
But if there was anything missing from his game, it was the lack of goals and Ancelotti could not believe that he ended the 2021-22 season with a solitary goal.
After the win over Leipzig, Ancelotti spoke candidly about the aforementioned and joked that if Valverde does not score more than 10 goals this season, he would rip up his coaching credentials.
“What seemed strange to me was that he just scored once last season. I told him that if he was not able to score more than 10 goals, I’d have to rip up my coach’s ID. He has a rock in his foot,” he was quoted by The Athletic.
For now, it’s understood that Ancelotti has big plans for Valverde. The only thing that remains to be seen is how he uses him throughout the season.
Real Madrid News
Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr. admits finishing problem after another frustrating night vs Elche: ‘Can’t miss that much’
Vinicius Jr.’s difficult start in front of goal continued against Elche, and the Real Madrid forward did not need anyone to tell him he had missed another chance to make the difference.
The Brazilian finished the night without a goal despite having chances to get on the scoresheet, while his teammates could only watch from the bench as opportunities went begging.
Jose Mourinho had already identified the problem before kick-off, bluntly pointing to the issue facing his forward, stating, “He’s missing the goal.”
Vini offered an equally frank assessment afterwards.
Rather than hide from another frustrating evening, he accepted responsibility on social media: “The goals will come back; I can’t miss that much…”
Two chances, no finish for Vinicius
Vinicius had two particularly clear openings against Elche, but neither produced the finish Real Madrid needed from their star forward.
The first arrived when he found himself one-on-one with the opposition goalkeeper.
Instead of finding the net, Vinicius caught the ball with the tip of his foot and sent his effort wide. Arda Guler was available during the move and called for the ball, but Vini backed himself to finish the chance.
He had another opportunity after the interval, this time following an excellent pass from Guler during a quick Real Madrid transition. Again, though, Vinicius could not find the target.
His evening ended in the 68th minute, with Mourinho deciding the Brazilian was tired and turning his attention towards Sunday’s Atletico Madrid derby.
Mourinho has a bigger decision to make
The numbers show why Vinicius’ finishing has become a talking point. He managed five shots against Elche, but only one was on target and none found the net.
After seven appearances this season, the Brazilian has scored just once, which is a striking return for a player Real Madrid rely upon to provide a major share of their attacking threat.
Ultimately, though, Real Madrid found another route to victory, with Arda Guler, Kylian Mbappe and Carlos Espi providing the goals in the 3-2 comeback.
Mesudin uzejrovic
September 16, 2022 at 12:18 am
Valverde is Real Madrid in real we don’t have super stars we r team and we winn and loose like team Halla Madrid