Real Madrid Juan Ignacio Garcia-Ochoa gives his opinion
Fede Valverde‘s partner, Mina Bonino, brought out her journalistic spirit and showed us all at the end of the match at Anfield the condition in which the Uruguayan played. The truth is that it was not necessary, because there should not be a single Real Madrid player who is not in love with him and who questions his commitment and love for the club. His celebration at Mestalla last season, his tackle on Alvaro Morata in the Supercopa de Espana, his collapse at the Camp Nou in the first leg of this season… In a very short time, Fede has given countless signs of his commitment and no one doubted he would be able to play at Anfield with a swollen ankle. He also did so in a position that is not his natural one, against one of the best wingers in the world. It is normal that this was recognised by all his teammates at the end of the game. He put himself on the line, and even more so against Liverpool, because we all know the criticism that would have sparked if the Reds had come back and Sadio Mane had dominated. This was not the case.
When it comes to talking about Fede, Martin Odegaard comes to mind, as he is a player of extraordinary quality but one who is the opposite of the Uruguayan at the moment. Aged 22, Valverde is enjoying his third season in Real Madrid‘s first team and already has the status of an important player. He has earned it with his work, doing so honestly and silently, not overnight. I say this because Valverde returned to Real Madrid in July 2018 after a loan spell at Deportivo La Coruna and did not make the squad list for a LaLiga Santander match until January 2019. And El Pajarito did not say anything. And he didn’t threaten to leave either. Yes, he had offers to leave, but he wanted to stay at Real Madrid.
Odegaard was the opposite. He returned to Real Madrid and began the season as a starter, but he was sent to the bench in favour of Luka Modric and was scared in January, when Real Madrid seemed to be collapsing. He went to Arsenal, who sit ninth in the Premier League table, and today he plays in the second leg of the Europa League quarter-finals instead of returning tired to Madrid after the Anfield clash. Because the Norwegian would have played many minutes and would be a fundamental player at Los Blancos due to this plague of injuries. Today, while he’s in London, Zinedine Zidane doesn’t have a single player other than Isco to come in and give Modric and Toni Kroos a break.
That Odegaard has an abundance of quality and a promising future in European football is undoubted, but if he wants to succeed at Real Madrid, he has to look at players like Fede Valverde. Because at Real Madrid it is not enough to be good; you have to have character, mentality and the desire to succeed. The Uruguayan insisted on doing it and boy has he succeeded. Not only is he succeeding, but he is an idol. Odegaard, for now, is just a great player whose commitment is very doubtful. Because he was only asked for a little patience and not to gamble with his leg, unlike Fede…
