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Decoding Fede Valverde: The perfect modern midfielder

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The burden of a Real Madrid shirt can be heavy.

We have seen players like Antonio Cassano, Javier Saviola, and, more recently, Eden Hazard struggling to cope with the astronomical expectations that come with the glorious white of Los Blancos.

But that has not been the case for Federico Valverde.

He arrived as a young player, honed his craft, and established himself as a first-XI essential.

The 24-year-old developed his profile to meet the flagship standards one would need to control the midfield for Real Madrid.

Valverde is a box-to-box midfielder by trade, but if you closely study his heat map, you will see he pops up in all areas on the pitch.

You will find him dropping deep to nullify an opposition attack; he will roam the left flank only to immediately switch to the right a few minutes later. Sometimes, you will mistake him for a striker. Valverde is omnipresent!

But you will be surprised to hear that Valverde was not much keen on running and having a fluid presence on the pitch during his formative years.

Valverde is an Atlético Peñarol academy graduate. He joined the academy of the Uruguayan giants as a 10-year-old.

As you can imagine, Peñarol scouts were impressed to see his attributes and identified him as a potential future star.

But their judgement was put in question when Valverde failed to impress in the first few years at the academy.

Valverde failed to make a mark initially because of his lean physique and unwillingness to press.

Valverde wanted to be a traditional 10, who sits behind the striker and feeds him with nifty passes inside the box.

But it was a dying art in football. In recent years, we have seen the rapid decline of classic playmakers like Mesut Özil and James Rodríguez.

Modern football has moved past the textbook number ten role.

Valverde realised this and decided to take on a more versatile approach.

He added more body mass and became a more dynamic player.

Valverde turned over a new leaf and became a relentless presser. At the age of 18, he was rewarded for his effort with a place in the Atlético Peñarol senior side.

But Real Madrid had already gotten wind of the player, and they came knocking on Peñarol’s door for Valverde.

After joining Madrid, Valverde would play in the reserves and go out on a loan spell at Deportivo de La Coruña.

He made it to the Real Madrid senior team in 2018, and since then, he has been a staple in the first team. Under Carlo Ancelotti, Valverde added new dimensions to his game, which helped him become a complete midfield package.

Valverde is an elite progressor of the ball.

Over the last 365 days, he has ranked in the 98th percentile for progressive carries. He clocks 7.92 progressive carries per 90, which puts him in the premium bracket among midfielders.

Valverde’s pressing, positioning, and work rate are his strongest qualities.

This season, he has been showing signs of overcoming one of his biggest weaknesses. Before the World Cup break, Valverde scored six times for Real Madrid. His tally includes goals against Atlético Madrid and Barcelona.

Carlo Ancelotti has been using Valverde like a Swiss army knife.

The youngster has been asked to play as a wide attacker and in several midfield positions.

He is a player who has a lot to offer to Real Madrid and he has a long future at the club.

Hopefully, this is just the beginning of Federico Valverde’s illustrious Real Madrid legacy.

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‘They have to be favourites’ – Liverpool ‘perfect’ in Champions League

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Liverpool’s impeccable start to the season has made them strong contenders for the Champions League. After securing a place in the knockout rounds with a win over Girona, they’ve maintained a perfect European record.

Rio Ferdinand praised their momentum, highlighting their position as favorites based on form, though he cautioned that freshness, particularly for key players like Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah, will be crucial. Stephen Warnock echoed this sentiment, noting that Liverpool is a formidable opponent in both the Premier League and Champions League.

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WATCH: Georgina Rodriguez makes huge claim on Cristiano Ronaldo’s retirement in Football

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Cristiano Ronaldo

Georgina Rodriguez made a huge claim on the future of her husband and star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Football. In a brief interaction with a host recently, Rodriguez was asked about the time left for Cristiano to make an impact at the highest level. Georgina looked honest in her approach to the question of the host and claimed something the fans would not love to hear.

Georgina claimed that the Portugal star has maybe one year more from him at the highest level. She felt that Ronaldo might play two more years before retiring and not more than that. She was however not sure if he would play for just one or two years and added that the Al Nassr star could also play more than that.

Watch the video of Georgina Rodriguez here –

 

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know,” said Rodriguez in the little chat she had with the host. The video has gone viral on X and the fans have started sharing it on different platforms. Some of the fans feel that Georgina might be right, while others feel that she could be wrong, given the fitness and longevity of the star player.

Legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo

On the 5th of February, Ronaldo celebrated his 39th birthday. He is currently one of the oldest players in the world. In the past, players at this age would have retired way back. But the fitness and consistency of Ronaldo make him play the sport as long as he wishes. In his career so far, Ronaldo has won many major leagues for Portugal and league teams like Real Madrid, Al Nassr, and Manchester United.

With United, Portugal won some major leagues like the FA Cup and the Champions League. With Real Madrid, the 39-year-old won the leagues like the UCL, Copa Del Rey and La Liga. He won it three consecutive times for Real Madrid. For Portugal, Cristiano had a huge contribution to Portugal. He has the most number of appearances and goals for an international team and won the Euro 2016 with Portugal.

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Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham slapped with Red Card as he argued with referee

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Jude Bellingham shown Red Card
Jude Bellingham shown Red Card (Image Credit: Twitter)

England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham was slapped with a Red Card during the La Liga game against Valencia. In the game, the home team, Valencia was leading by 2-0 after 30 minutes before Madrid scored in the injury time of the first half. Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for Madrid while Hugo Duro (27′) and Roman Yaremchuk (30′) scored a goal each.

In the 76th minute, Junior scored an equalizer to keep the team in the game. However, in the injury time of the second half, Bellingham was given a red card as he argued with the referee against calling it a full-time before he could score. In reply, the match official decided to slap the England international with a Red Card. The team coach Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t happy with the verdict as the Three Lions player was making a pass at the time.

“I think what’s just happened is unprecedented. It’s never happened to me,” Ancelotti told reporters.

“We had possession of the ball and the match should have been finished when Valencia had the ball.

“What bothers us is the red card for Bellingham because he didn’t say anything insulting. He was frustrated of course,” said Ancelotti, adding that Bellingham had used a common English swearword when telling the referee it was a goal.

We are annoyed with Jude Bellingham’s Red Card: Carlo Ancelotti

“We were annoyed with Bellingham’s red card. He didn’t say any insults. He said in English ‘it’s a f—ing goal,’ but he was just saying what we were all thinking … [The referee] allowed play to continue. I think he made a mistake.”

“[Bellingham] was clear in what he said,” Ancelotti added. “He was quite vehement [in his reaction] but that’s normal, after what happened. It wasn’t an insult, not at all.”

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