Real Madrid News
Real Madrid coach must play balancing act in the final matches of the season due to World Cup
Real Madrid host Deportivo Alaves at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday in what is, on paper, a match with very little at stake for the home side.
Eliminated from the Champions League and nine points adrift of Barcelona in La Liga, the final seven games of the season represent little more than damage limitation for Alvaro Arbeloa’s side.
World Cup eyes in the dressing room
According to Diario SPORT, a significant portion of the Real Madrid squad currently has their attention fixed firmly on this summer’s World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
With collective honours no longer attainable, individual ambitions have taken centre stage, and the priority for many players is simply to arrive at the tournament fit and healthy.
That creates a delicate situation for Arbeloa. More than half of his squad have received international call-ups at some point this season.
For several of them, these final seven league games represent their last opportunity to impress their respective national team coaches ahead of the summer.
Players such as Carvajal, Mastantuono, Huijsen and Camavinga all fall into the category of those needing to make a late case for inclusion.
Meanwhile, others, including Bellingham, Vinicius, Mbappe, Valverde, Tchouameni, Guler and Rudiger, are considered certainties for their nations provided they avoid injury.
And therein lies the problem. For those already assured of their World Cup place, the incentive to push through any physical discomfort in meaningless league fixtures is minimal.
The risk of aggravating an injury in a dead rubber will always outweigh the reward, and Arbeloa will be well aware that some of his biggest names may not be fully committed to throwing themselves into every challenge over the coming weeks.
Real Madrid News
Former Real Madrid manager defends Vinicius following red card vs Villarreal: ‘I don’t see intentionality’
Real Madrid resumed their campaign with a narrow win over Villarreal and three points, but it was yet another controversial affair due to refereeing decisions.
Vinicius Jr thought he had doubled Madrid’s lead against Villarreal, only for the goal to be chalked off and the Brazilian to be sent off in the same breath.
A VAR review showed Vinicius had tugged the hair of Villarreal’s Nathan Saliba in the build-up, prompting referee Isidro Diaz de Mera to void the goal and brandish a straight red.
The decision has split opinion, and one Madrid great has come out firmly in the forward’s corner.
Jorge Valdano on Vinicius’ red
Former real Madrid player and manager Jorge Valdano, speaking to Movistar, saw little malice in the incident.
“It’s an absolutely instinctive gesture. He feels they’re closing him in, he wants to get rid of it, and he does it in the most illegal way he can find,” he said (h/t Mundo Deportivo).
Drawing a distinction with more serious offences, he added: “It would make the difference between what is a spit, for example, and what this is.”
The former World Cup winner was unequivocal in his assessment of the act itself. “I don’t see any intentionality, the dirtyness of the action,” he concluded.
Ominous time for Vinicius
Valdano’s sympathy will do little to console Vinicius Jr., who might be staring at a lengthy suspension after the red card incident.
The Brazilian is already at risk of missing the Clasico on October 25, with the final disciplinary ruling still to come.
The referee’s report logs two separate matters. The first is the hair pull itself; the second is his reaction, described as continued loud protests and an aggressive approach to the official that forced Federico Valverde, Antonio Rudiger and others to restrain him.
Depending on how that conduct is classified, the suspension could stretch to two, three or four games. The one reprieve is that the red card is domestic, leaving Vinicius free for Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Roma.
