Real Madrid News
Real Madrid have high hopes on 21-year-old prodigy for the future
Arda Guler made headlines this past weekend by scoring an eye-catching goal from his own half, catching the Elche goalkeeper completely off guard.
His goal against Elche has been enough to spark a bigger conversation about the playmaker’s future at Real Madrid.
The Turkish international, after all, is the fourth-most used player at Real Madrid under the leadership of Alvaro Arbeloa. But his performances have not been consistent enough to warrant a superstar tag just yet.
Real Madrid have high hopes on Guler
According to The Athletic, Real Madrid have kept high hopes on Arda Guler to deliver and become the core of the next generation of stars.
Especially after the departure of Xabi Alonso, Real Madrid’s bosses have conveyed to the former Fenerbahce talent their hopes on him.
It appears Real Madrid want Guler to bring more structure and technical fluency to a team that has a lot of physically imposing players.
Guler’s partnership with Kylian Mbappe is another positive, as the Frenchman is seen as the undisputed leader in the team right now, as far as reputation is concerned.
“I don’t know if there’s a manager who has given Arda Guler more playing time than I have,” Arbeloa said in a recent interaction. “I’d like to know — I have my doubts, and I don’t think so.”
Given Real Madrid’s expectations from Guler, it is understandable why Arbeloa has relied heavily on the young Turk this season.
The onus is now on Guler to step up his performances. He has racked up four goals and 13 assists in all competitions. But these numbers need a boost, especially heading into the final stretch of the campaign.
With the international break done and dusted, Real Madrid will be back in action this weekend in La Liga, where they will be looking to catch up to league leaders FC Barcelona.
Coming up for Jose Mourinho & co., who lost their last game before the international break, will be a home game against Villarreal on Saturday.
And, leading up to the game, the Spanish capital club have received welcome news on the injury front.
Mbappe back in group training
Indeed, as per MARCA, Kylian Mbappe will be available for Real Madrid’s match against Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.
Having been training individually so far this week, the France captain rejoined group training under Mourinho today, taking a concrete step forward towards making himself available for the game.
The forward looked relaxed and ready to work, putting his boots back on and joining the group as Real Madrid prepare for a demanding run of fixtures throughout October.
And, unless there is any unforeseen setback, everything suggests that Mbappe will be ready to start against the Yellow Submarine come Saturday.
Under scrutiny
The past few weeks have been nothing short of eventful for Mbappe, with his every action and movement under heavy scrutiny.
Playing for France, in Zinedine Zidane’s managerial debut, the 27-year-old superstar scored a goal before asking for a substitution due to a knee injury.
Having flown back to Madrid, he underwent tests, which confirmed the injury, although it was not as serious as was initially feared.
The forward then took week-long holiday with his partner that sparked some debate among supporters and attracted criticism from multiple quarters.
Mbappe returned to Madrid on Monday and participated in individual sessions at Valdebebas over the past couple of days. Now he has resumed normal training with his teammates.
There had been doubts over whether Mbappe would be able to face Villarreal after he picked up the injury on 25 September.
However, the recovery plan followed by the forward appears to have worked, and he is now expected to be in a fully fit condition for Saturday’s match.
