Alvaro Arbeloa has recalled that this squad has an average age of around 23 or 24 years old, while the eleven that won the last Champions League would have an average age of 27 or 28 years old. However, this does not mean that the coach feels that there are no leaders and experienced people to lead the younger players. “I can say many, there is Carvajal, Alaba, Militao, Bellingham, Valverde, Vinicius, Mbappe… I think there are many players with a lot of experience, who have been at the club and in football for many years, and who have a great personality,” commented the coach in this morning’s press conference.
It is true that there is a debate among Madrid fans about the leaders in the dressing room. In the golden era, perhaps the most successful in Madrid’s history, players such as Ramos, Cristiano, Modric, Benzema and Kroos himself took on this role. From Arbeloa’s list, Carvajal is the first on his list and it makes sense. He is the only one left with more experience from that period.
There are other players who have soaked up the leadership of this group and who are now on the coach’s list. This is the case of Valverde, Alaba and Vinicius himself. The presence of the Austrian is also not surprising despite the fact that his time at Madrid is coming to an end. You only have to see how he went for Vinicius at one point in the match against Bayern, on the sidelines, to calm the player down. It was one of the images that went viral on social networks.Arbeloa adds two more players, the last to arrive. One is Bellingham, who won the last Champions League with Los Blancos in London against Dortmund, and the other is Mbappe.
The coach has always defended the Frenchman, whom some people accuse of a certain lack of commitment based on some details on the field. However, for Arbeloa, his experience and the fact that he won a World Cup at only 18 years of age is more than enough to understand that he is a very mentally prepared player.
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