Real Madrid News
Real Madrid leaders request Ancelotti for ‘full focus’ on Copa del Rey as well – report
Real Madrid have enjoyed great success so far under the leadership of Carlo Ancelotti. The veteran manager helped the club secure the Champions League title last season while also clinching La Liga from the hands of Atletico Madrid.
However, despite Real Madrid’s dominance in both the league and UCL, the club feel they are missing out on an important trophy: Copa del Rey.
According to a report from Diario AS (h/t Madrid Zone), there was a message inside the Real Madrid camp after last season: to win the Copa del Rey.
Real Madrid have lagged behind Barcelona and other rivals when it comes to Copa del Rey in recent years. They have not won the competition since the 2013/14 campaign. Incidentally, it was Ancelotti who was the head coach of Real Madrid at the time.
Last season, Los Blancos could only make it as far as the quarter-finals of the competition, at which point they were eliminated by Athletic Club.
With that in mind, the Real Madrid leaders have requested Ancelotti at the start of the season that the club put ‘full focus’ on Copa del Rey as well, along with La Liga and the Champions Laegue.
The Merengues have won the competition 19 times, but are behind Barcelona and Athletic Club in the all-time list. Real Betis are currently the defending champions, having beaten Valencia in the final earlier this year.
As far as the 2022/23 season is concerned, Real Madrid are yet to kickstart their Copa del Rey campaign so far, with the competition currently in the qualifying stages.
According to AS, Atletico Madrid have made the first approach for Celta Vigo midfielder Gabri Veiga, who has also been linked heavily with a move to Real Madrid and Arsenal.
The 20-year-old midfielder has emerged as one of the most exciting young prospects in Spanish football this season, having already netted nine goals in La Liga.
It has alerted a series of top-level clubs, with the likes of Real Madrid, Arsenal, Liverpool and Atletico Madrid all being linked with the youngster, who has a €40 million release clause in his contract with Celta.
Real Madrid are in the market for midfield reinforcements and have identified Jude Bellingham as their top target, but Veiga is also said to be on the agenda at the Santiago Bernabeu
However, recently, the Galician club’s president confirmed that there had been contact from clubs in England, but stated that Real Madrid had made no approach.
On top of that, a report from MARCA quoted a club source saying that they were not contemplating signing the 20-year-old.
Amidst this, it has now emerged that Atletico Madrid have made an approach towards signing Veiga from Celta Vigo in the summer transfer window.
The Rojiblancos are also in the market for new midfielders amid question marks over the futures of Saul Niguez and Geoffrey Kondogbia.
While Diego Simeone’s side have taken a first step, the report indicates that Veiga, in case of the absence of interest from Real Madrid, would prefer to join Arsenal.
So, the Colchoneros will need to put in efforts to convince the 20-year-old to choose them over a move to the Premier League club come summer if they are serious about adding the talented youngster to their roster for next season.
