The pandemic beat down on the Royal Society. He was in the Champions League when the last League was interrupted, then suffered until the end to reach the Europa League after two wins in the last eleven days and up to six positives for COVID have notably hampered their preseason. “The confinement made us fatal,” Imanol Alguacil, a technician from the house, lamented at the time, who turned the team around, which he took three points from the decline a little over a year and a half ago but who I expected a happier ending last year. Like Madrid, his summer has been at zero cost. It has reconfigured its squad with the return of some loan officers (Bautista, Merquelanz, Guridi, Sagnan …) and the arrival of David Silva by Odegaard, the galactic of Madrid in this new normal.
Odegaard should take center stage, though perhaps not at the start. In principle, a second Erasmus was scheduled in San Sebastián, but the effects of the pandemic ended up making him the only noble reinforcement of Madrid. In his season at Real, he left nine goals, eleven assists and the stamp of a set player, with hierarchy, ready for take off at 21, five after his signing for Madrid, which was already beginning to buy a future. But Odegaard has suffered physical problems, he was not in Tuesday's friendly against Getafe and Zidane struggles to move the Modric-Casemiro-Kroos trio, the center of the field of the imperial era. It will be his third game with Madrid. The previous one dates back to November 2016, in a cup clash against Cultural Leonesa. He was 17 years old and almost everything to learn. In any case, he is on the list and his possible re-release is the best of the poster with David Silva.
Silva, the return of a genius
The canary, whose positive for COVID was known the same day of his presentation, has been training for a week. On the road to 35 years, it is the first stone of the new project. He will play in LaLiga again 3,792 days later. He is not the only footballer to come out of the virus tunnel. Oyarzabal and Januzaj, two other of those infected, have already played 13 minutes against Valladolid. Today they will have more travel. Monreal is also recovered. Willian José, formerly of Madrid and after a quarantine, is left out. La Real has also lost Zubeldia, its axis of rotation in the center of the field. He will be relieved by Guevara, who has not played a game since March 10 due to an ankle injury.
Madrid, which begins the defense of the title, has caught the week looking at the market. Bale's departure, that since February he had played 100 minutes and that did not score in LaLiga for more than a year, alleviates the box and the appearances of Zidane before the Press. And it also cleans the attack zone of candidates, which has become very thin with injuries: Lucas Vázquez, Isco, Mariano, Asensio … More Hazard, in his second summer in white. Now he is not even seen by his coach, Roberto Martínez. Fled Bale, Real Madrid already have someone to worry about. The course begins by staying in Madrid.
Vinicius, again at kilometer cero
The Belgian is the cap of Vinicius, whose career travels on a roller coaster. For Zidane he has not broken the door down. He only started twelve games in the last league and rolled several times from the top. Hero in the triumph against Barça, he returned to the bench. He dazzled in Anoeta and scored against Mallorca in the post-pandemic and returned to the bench. The regularity and the goal (five in the past year) are his pending subjects, although he seems closer to breaking in crack than in bluff.
Today he will accompany Benzema on the left. On the right, like last year, almost all are passing players, although Rodrygo, the one with the most goals, seems to have a slight advantage. Tneither is Odegaard ruled out there. Above only French is essential. He scored 27 goals last season and 30 the previous one. The last one with Cristiano stayed at 12. On Tuesday he made four to Getafe in a while. It is the flag of Madrid, almost always without company.
The last duel between the two is still hot. For the elapsed time (June 21) and for the controversy that enveloped him. Estrada whistled a penalty at Vinicius, Januzaj was disallowed by a meticulous line for a positional offside goal by Merino that meant the tie and Benzema immediately made it 0-2 in a border control between the arm and the shoulder. Madrid won 1-2 while half the League, led by Barça, took VAR by the chest in those days. The teams have changed little since then and the stadiums, which remain empty, even less. Anoeta will live another great game with a silencer.