Real Madrid News
Ex-Real Madrid star thanks club after deadline day exit: “Grateful to have had a happy time”
Alvaro Odriozola was the only Real Madrid player who saw some action on transfer deadline day.
The right-back sealed a return to his former club Real Sociedad for a fee of €1.5 million plus add-ons. The player desperately wanted to return to his old club after a difficult spell at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Odriozola thanks Real Madrid and Florentino Perez
Odriozola was recently unveiled as an official Real Sociedad once again, five years after he had left the club for a fee of €32 million.
Speaking at his presentation, Odriozola did not miss a moment to thank Real Madrid and club president Florentino Perez for enabling him to return to his old club.
“Real Madrid is a magnificent club, and today I want to thank President Florentino and José Ángel Sánchez because they allowed me to realize a dream, that of returning home to Sociedad,” he said (h/t Mundo Deportivo).
Odriozola’s time at Madrid
During his initial spell at Sociedad, Odriozola had featured in 57 competitive matches for the Txuri-Urdin, establishing himself as one of the most promising right-backs in Europe.
It prompted Real Madrid to sign him in 2018, but he never got going. Looking back at his stint at the Santiago Bernabeu, he acknowledged:
“Madrid is a very competitive club, the competition is tough, I can only speak highly of my teammates and coaches like Zidane, Ancelotti, Lopetegui… I’m grateful to have had a happy time, and I’m now returning home with all the humility in the world.”
While the Spaniard has not been able to realise his potential, he remains a reliable option with years of experience at the highest level of football.
As for Real Madrid, they are unlikely to be fazed by the departure of Odriozola, who had no future at the Bernabeu despite the club’s lack of options in the right-back position.
The Spanish giants, though, are expected to make a big-money signing in the position next summer, with Perez particularly keen on roping in Chelsea captain Reece James in the future.
However, with Real Madrid also keen on signing a new striker, it remains to be seen whether or not the club are able to sign the Englishman next summer.
Real Madrid News
Mourinho talks Carlos Espi, Diomande, Guler, Tchouameni, Atletico Madrid after Elche 2-3 Real Madrid
Real Madrid found another way to win, but Jose Mourinho was hardly celebrating the manner of it.
Carlos Espi’s injury-time strike completed a 3-2 comeback against Elche, rescuing Madrid after they had surrendered control of a game that appeared to be in their hands.
For Mourinho, the result was welcome, but the performance raised a familiar concern.
“When everything seems easy and you let things slide, it’s dangerous. Then the team reacts and wins, but it’s not pleasant.
“The other good thing is that nobody gets bored with these matches. They’re fun,” he began saying.
Mourinho knows what is going wrong
The Portuguese coach was particularly frustrated by another drop in intensity after the interval.
Real Madrid had opportunities to put the game beyond Elche before allowing their advantage to disappear. Mourinho believes that pattern is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
“It seems obvious to me. It’s easy to understand. These are games that are all but over, where we have chances to seal the deal but don’t. After failing to do so, we go from having it easy to losing control.
“If we play poorly from the first minute to the 90th, the concern is huge.
“If we have periods where we’re at our best and others where we’re not proactive, just waiting, lacking intensity… Of course it’s a concern. But we won.”
The win keeps Madrid moving, but Mourinho’s concern is less about the points than the way his team is repeatedly making matches unnecessarily complicated.
Carlos Espi again provided the decisive moment from the bench, although Mourinho knows breaking into the starting XI will be difficult with Mbappé ahead of him.
“He’s a guy who works hard and is very motivated,” Mourinho said.
He then added, “He’s up against a player who’s in a league of his own (Mbappe), and we’re well aware of that.”
Madrid derby comes at a delicate moment
Next up is Atletico Madrid, and Mourinho’s attention is already turning towards the derby.
Rather than focusing on the opposition, he remains concerned about his own side’s ability to manage matches.
“The only explanation I can find is that we can’t keep going like this. We misjudged the opportunities we had, and once they score a goal, everything changes,” explained the Real Madrid coach.
Meanwhile, there were positives to take from individual performances, as Mourinho praised Yan Diomande’s development after another energetic outing.
“He’s improving. Physically, you can tell he has more minutes under his belt. He has a great work ethic and intelligence—he’s done a great job.”
Mourinho refuses to call Guler indispensable
Arda Guler’s importance was also questioned after another fantastic performance, but Mourinho rejected the idea that any player is beyond replacement.
“No, no one is indispensable. We were losing control when I made the substitutions; Vini did a great job on defence, but he was very tired.
“And Arda, who was playing in the number 10 position, was also losing intensity.
“I brought in a fresh Jude and Brahim when we were down 0-2, but I could sense we were losing control. That’s how it goes for us. And then, we brought in the heavy artillery and turned it around.”
Mourinho was also pleased with Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde during Madrid’s strongest spells.
“When the team was playing well, he and Valverde were playing well. They broke through the pressure easily, with skill.
“But the game had two phases—or rather three: one until it was 0–2, another until it was 2–2, and another until the end. They did a good job,” he concluded.
Source: AS
Mandla
September 4, 2023 at 8:45 pm
We need to be calm cool and collected when we dò business. Emotions aside we need to use our minds well.thinking with our heads not our blood.