Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde could be regarded as one of Carlo Ancelotti’s most loyal soldiers, but they didn’t always see eye to eye. The Uruguayan has explained that he wasn’t always thrilled with being used out on the right hand side.
For much of their 2021-22 season, Valverde was used out on the right side of midfield, not for the first time either, but it became his usual position. He has also been shifted around the middle of the pitch on various occasions.
This year he still played on the right at times, but also returned to the middle alongside Toni Kroos, where he exhibited his best form this season. On international duty, he discussed his positional shifts.
“I have learned to really value playing wherever they want me to play. When I started my time with Ancelotti I had that anger of… why do I have to change my position? But then I learned to value what the coach asks of you and to know how to mature in different parts of the game and that if the coach asks you to help out in another position, you have to value it, understand it and get the most out of it for the good of the team.”
“And coming from him, from Ancelotti… playing for Real Madrid is not easy, you have to hold on and never let go of that opportunity,” he explained to La Quinta Tribuna, as quoted by Diario AS.
With the exit of Toni Kroos and arrival of Kylian Mbappe, Valverde will like his chances of starting in the middle of midfield again, in his more traditional deeper role. All the same, his lung-busting runs are a dangerous weapon for Real Madrid, and there’s no doubt that playing further forward has added to his game.
