Real Madrid News
Out-of-favour Real Madrid defender determined to stay despite lack of minutes
Real Madrid defender Jesus Vallejo, who is celebrating his 26th birthday today, has no intention to leave the club and is determined to stay at the Santiago Bernabeu.
This claim comes from journalist Jorge C Picon, who states that the centre-back remains intent on staying put and fighting for a place in Carlo Ancelotti’s side despite his lack of minutes.
Vallejo joined Real Madrid back in 2015 from Real Zaragoza in a deal worth €5 million and was immediately loaned back to his boyhood club. Following that, the 26-year-old had a series of loan stints at Eintracht Frankfurt, Wolves and Granada.
Upon returning to Madrid in 2021, Ancelotti decided to keep hold of the Spaniard as additional cover in defence but has not used him all that regularly. Indeed, Vallejo played a total of eight matches and 353 minutes last season, while he has featured for just 56 minutes this term.
There had been speculations of an exit in the summer, but Vallejo remained insistent on staying at the Bernabeu despite the arrival of Antonio Rudiger.
And, as per the report from Jorge Picon, the 26-year-old’s stance has not changed this winter either as he wishes to continue at the club despite his lack of prominence in Ancelotti’s plans.
The likes of Eder Militao, David Alaba, Rudiger, and Nacho are all ahead of him and it is unlikely that his situation will improve in the coming months.
But Vallejo, whose contract runs until the summer of 2025, continues to dream of succeeding at Real Madrid and does not plan on leaving anytime soon.
Although he desires to play more, he understands that at a club like Real Madrid, competition for places is always great. Furthermore, the club are also happy with the professionalism and commitment of the defender.
There is no way back for Eden Hazard at Real Madrid. The Belgian international has not given the management any reason to have faith in his abilities over his past four seasons at the club and is unsurprisingly the most important departure for the Merengues in the summer.
Hazard has one more year on his contract in Madrid. However, it is clear that Carlo Ancelotti does not trust him and that any potential replacement manager in the summer will echo his stance.
According to reports from Mundo Deportivo, Fenerbahce are willing to go all out to sign Hazard this summer. The Turkish side have made the former Chelsea their prime target, yet face a steep task ahead of them.
The 32-year-old is hellbent on seeing out his contract with Los Blancos despite seeing his career sink right before his eyes. It thus becomes complicated for the party to lure away the forward, especially in a competition outside Europe’s top five leagues.
Fenerbahce attempted to sign the winger in the recently concluded winter transfer market. They reached an agreement with Real Madrid but failed to get over the line as they could not convince the player of the move.
The biggest obstacle for the Turkish side will be convincing Hazard to make the move by letting go of his lucrative contract in Madrid. The chances are slim, but not impossible.
Hazard has made just three league appearances and one start for Ancelotti’s side this season in La Liga, a steep fall from last season’s 18 and seven respectively.
His last appearance for the team came back in January when Real Madrid faced Cacereno in the Copa del Rey. In La Liga however, he last played in September 2022 in a 4-1 win over Mallorca.
