Real Madrid News
Real Madrid expecting offers for out-of-favour duo in the final week of transfer window
Real Madrid have already bid goodbye to several players this summer but with less than two weeks left for the transfer window to close, there could be a few more exits on the cards.
Indeed, according to journalist Rodra, Los Blancos are expecting offers to come in for out-of-favour duo Alvaro Odriozola and Reinier Jesus in the final week of the summer window.
The attacking midfielder and right-back do not have any offers at this point, but Real Madrid are expecting proposals to arrive in the next few days.
Reinier, Odriozola not in Ancelotti’s plans
Reinier returned to Real Madrid in the summer after a season on loan at Girona, where he failed to make much of an impression.
While he was training with the first-team under Carlo Ancelotti early on, soon he was told that he was not part of the manager’s plans.
After being left out of the squad for the US tour was sent off to train by himself with Castilla youngsters who are also on their way out.
A move back to Girona on loan was suggested, but it ended up collapsing, and the Brazilian attacking midfielder is waiting for an offer to come forth.
As for Odriozola, he continues to train under Ancelotti and remains in the first-team dynamics, but has no role in the Italian tactician’s plans.
As such, an exit has been mooted for him all summer long, but recent reports are suggesting that the right-back might prefer to stay at the club and see out his contract which expires at the end of the season.
This is despite him having very little chance of getting any minutes under Ancelotti.
It will be interesting to see if any offers do arrive for either Reinier or Odriozola in the remaining days of the window.
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
