Something has happened since the Wembley final so that the Madrid locker room has stopped being that Madrid locker room, supportive, generous and family-oriented that led the team to its second double in three seasons. A healthy wardrobe, as he called it, and calls it, Ancelotti, who never had a reproach, a gesture or a bad face on the pitch. That is not so now. The fusses between teammates were seen again against Milan, as already happened against Barça, Celta, Lille, Mallorca… There are many games in which gestural language betrays frustration and loss of confidence.
There is a distance between some players and the coaching staff and that is reflected in the physical and mental state of a squad whose legs and head are weighing down right now. But the idyllic relationships that are no longer so idyllic do not only concern the interaction between the staff and the technical command. Chemistry has been lost between the players and it is beginning to be normal to see the angry faces of Bellingham when he kills himself to run, while Vinicius and Mbappé press with their gaze. Just what the Brazilian did when Tchouaméni gave him the wrong pass for 1-2. They both stood still, as if nothing of what was happening there concerned them.
Even Lunin, surely the coldest player on the squad, let out his anger yesterday after conceding the third goal. He scolds the team for the lack of commitment when it comes to defending the play. Bad sign if the Ukrainian is forced to raise his voice. Just as it is also true that the wife of a footballer, and not just any one, but one of the coach’s right eyes and one of the most beloved in the locker room, such as Valverde, turns on the shit fan on her social networks.
Mina not only targeted the coach for placing her husband on the far right, a position that in her eyes is not the right one. Valverde. It is also curious that the wife of a footballer publicly questions the statements of the coach who, on the other hand, always has a compliment for Valverde. He also left a message for Vinicius and Mbappé, although without naming them, when one of his followers reproached him that Valverde had missed Morata’s goal and was not having his best game: “I never see forwards being reproached for going down.” Bonino wrote.
Here he was right, but if he understood that this was how he was going to defend Fede, he chose the wrong path. If there is something that is not liked in football locker rooms, like those of Madrid, where egos are the order of the day, it is when family members cause trouble. There are a few players, with their respective girlfriends and wives, who have reasons to be excited. Let them tell the invisible ones Endrick and Güler, that have completely disappeared from Ancelotti’s plan. He doesn’t even pull them when the team is in deep water, but they remain silent, which is what, at least from behind the scenes, is what matters.
And what also needs to happen is for someone in the locker room to bang on the table. is missed the leadership of Nacho and Kroosbut especially that of Carvajal. His loss is much more than a sports hole. In a Real Madrid where the Spaniards and the homegrown players can be counted on one finger, Dani’s absence is a drama. The character, personality and hierarchy of the pepinero is key in moments of weakness, and no one seems to have any intention of taking his place. Either they don’t want to, or they don’t know. After the 0-4 against Barcelona, no player showed their face. After 1-3 against Milan, only Lucas and Lunin, right back and substitute goalkeeper, did so. Where are the heavyweights and stars when their fans need to listen to them most? For now, missing.
#Lack #leadership #chatter #locker #room #forwards #reproached
