“Rüdiger is the mirror where all young people should look at themselves”

The Real Madrid coach, Álvaro Arbeloa, has come out in defense of “Don Antonio Rüdiger”, stating that he is “the mirror in which all young people should look at themselves” and even ensuring that he would be willing to put “a statue” of him in his garden, and has highlighted the importance of this Sunday’s derby against Atlético de Madrid for “what these three points mean.”

“I don’t like to get involved in these issues, I have a lot of respect for both the club and the player, who are the two parties that have to understand each other. And if you ask me, I am willing to make a statue of Rüdiger and put it in the garden. He is a footballer who from the first day I arrived has only made himself available to the coaching staff. I remember he sat down with me and told me ‘mister, in March I will be available when the hard part comes’, and boy has he been,” he declared at a press conference.

In addition, he stated that German is an example for younger people. “He is the mirror in which all young people should look at themselves. He is a player who I hope Real Madrid fans know how lucky we are to have him in this club and that they always have him in gratitude for the effort, the personality, the character he gives us, for the talent as a player. I can only say absolutely wonderful things for Mr. Antonio Rüdiger,” he said.

Regarding Thibaut Courtois’ injury, he explained that “no” deadline was set. “These two weeks of break are going to help us a lot. We’ll see later, but right now we don’t have any deadline set either,” he said. “Every time we put a player on the field, we are taking a risk. People don’t know it, but there are very few footballers who go out on the field at 100%, without any discomfort. I think that is normal in competitive football,” he said.

“What I can tell you is that when it came to half-time Thibaut wanted to continue playing and I was the one who decided to stop, also because of the maximum confidence I have in Lunin. He has already shown many times in this club what a great goalkeeper he is and I am sure he will do so again in the face of this great opportunity. It is the luck of having a squad like this, that the best goalkeeper in history is injured and we have another great goalkeeper that I am sure will once again show how good he is,” he continued.

In another order of things, the white coach acknowledged that they face the derby “with great desire and great enthusiasm.” “We know that tomorrow is a very important game for us because of what these three points mean, also for the fans, for the great atmosphere we have been experiencing in the stadium these last few games, for the excitement that has been created. It is one of the best games that can be experienced as a player, as a spectator and surely also as a coach. I am looking forward to seeing a Bernabéu dedicated and with great enthusiasm. We are looking forward to playing against a great team, so we face it with the maximum expectation and with the maximum enthusiasm,” he noted.

He also assured that it is “lucky” to face coaches like Diego Pablo Simeone. “He has been at Atlético de Madrid for many years, demonstrating his quality as a coach, his talent and where he has taken them, the consistency he has maintained and which has put Atlético de Madrid back on track. He is the typical coach who pushes you to the maximum, who demands the maximum, who makes you give the games a lot of thought. It is a luck to face the best coaches in the world,” he expressed.

He also confirmed that Kylian Mbappé is fully recovered. “I already told you that the day he returned it was because he was at 100%. In the minutes that we spent in Manchester, two or three starts that he made, he showed that he is very good and that his feelings are what is important in the end, how he found himself, how he is in training. Maximum confidence, maximum guarantees, maximum excitement of having a player like him back, so unbalanced and at 100%,” he stressed.

Thus, he thinks it is “phenomenal” that he has been called up with the French team. “He is a player who is at the coach’s disposal, who has already played with us. Tomorrow he is going to play for sure, so I don’t see any problem with him going with his national team, it is good news. Having many international players means that you have high-level players, and if they are called up it is because they are very good and it is good news for Real Madrid,” he indicated.

For this reason, he did not question Jude Bellingham’s call-up to England either. “He is already available, tomorrow he will be in the squad. We will see if he plays. I really want to see him on the field now and it is normal that he can go with his national team. He is a very intelligent player, he knows especially well what he is doing at all times and the situation he is in, but for my part I am very happy that tomorrow he will be available and prepared to help us,” he stated.

“What doesn’t depend on me, I don’t give it much thought. I can’t pretend that players like Bellingham and Mbappé don’t go to the national team. They are very important players for me and I understand that they are important for their selectors, who have the World Cup in a few months. I have been lucky enough to defend my country and play with the national team and I know the pride you feel when you represent your country. I understand this situation perfectly. There is no problem, because they are also two very intelligent players. They know how important they are for their teams. countries, but also for their clubs. I hope to see you back in a few days,” he continued.

Furthermore, he does not believe that the team will change with the return of Bellingham and Mbappé. “We work collectively and depending on the player we put on the field we are going to look for a series of adjustments. It is not the same to play with Brahim up front as with Kylian, or with Arda or with Thiago. They are players who have different characteristics, and defensively each one will have to do their job. They are players who have been in the elite for many years and who know perfectly well what it means to work as a team and put their talent at the disposal of their teammates,” he declared.

“This is a collective effort and they have to understand what they have understood in these last few games, that to attack, we all attack, defend, we all defend. As a coach, I have to find their best position and make them work, give them the necessary mobility and space so that they can show their talent. If the eleven of us don’t work, it doesn’t matter what rival you have in front of us, we are going to suffer. We have to be a team, travel together when we go forward, travel together when we go backwards. That is having a collective mentality. I don’t see much of a problem with having great players; yes, a problem, well blessed problem. It will be my turn to ensure that they understand their role in the team and that they put all their talent at the service of the group,” he continued.

Therefore, he does not believe that this means that Thiago Pitarch will leave the team. “When we reach that river, we will cross that bridge. Having Jude Bellingham back in the team is excellent news for me. Having gotten Thiago to give this performance is also excellent news. There are many games, many minutes and I love these problems. Blessed problem to have to choose between great players. The two of them can play together too, so just because Bellingham plays does not mean that Thiago has to stop playing,” he explained.

Finally, Arbeloa spoke about Dani Carvajal’s role. “I have to think about Real Madrid, that’s what I did when I put Carvajal on the field. That’s going to help him and it’s going to be very good for him to get into a rhythm, to continue helping us. He’s available and his figure goes far beyond what he contributes on the field. The importance that each of his messages has in the locker room, it helps his teammates a lot and that’s what we need, a leader. For me, a leader is one who is capable of leading on the field and off the field, because either You are a leader everywhere or you are not a leader,” he concluded.