The right wing of Madrid was not enough to compress, which will be more so. Because in a matter of days it has gone from having one immovable owner… To four in a very tough casting. The starboard guns were named after Mbappeuntil Bondy decided not to get on the boat. And now there are four names for a vacancy. The three of this season (Rodrygo, Asensio and Valverde) and a new candidate who has shown his cards -and his fangs- publicly: Hazard. Soccer players poker and only one can be chosen. Looking for a winner.
The Belgian has turned everything upside down. Since undergoing an operation to remove a osteosynthesis plate of the right fibula, is another. He spent almost 45 days in rehabilitation, came back and in Valdebebas not only a spectacular physical change (faster, in shape…), but also in attitude was noted. He has claw, desire, energy. Ancelotti, knowing that in his boots there is a brilliant talent and that the broken one can still have a patchwas resounding at a press conference to announce that -even when the Mbappé thing still seemed on the way to be done- another course would continue. What was left
The mentality of Hazard It is that of a player who knows that he has disappointed, that a lot was expected of him and, for the time being, his potential has not been seen. But far from giving up, his decision has been to roll up his sleeves and start working again; right from the start. Slate and new account. “He will not leave until he proves that he is the strongest,” said his little brother, Kylian, also a soccer player. Eden has a contract until June 2024, that is to say, this course that enters and another one. It starts from kilometer zero and has meters to pick up speed and take off. Earn a position.
Hazard and Lucas Vázquez joke during training last Tuesday.
Gabriel Bouys (AFP)
Overbooking
And that is where the crux of the matter comes in. The level of Benzema and Viniciusa golden duo and in the top 3 scorers in the last league (27 and 17 blows, respectively), makes them indisputable. They can go to the bench in the form of rest, but the present should change a lot for someone to overtake them. So only one place remains free: the right wing. That’s where you’ll have to earn a spot. Hazard, who won’t have it easyas it is the position that has suffered the most rotations throughout the season, ahead of the side.
There were already three candidates before. To this day, the one that seems stronger is Rodrygoboosted by a last historic month for Madrid and for him. His target at Pizjuán was the appetizer to his hope against Chelsea… And his delirium against City. Of all the names, it is the one that is going through a most outstanding moment. But, nevertheless, he is not the one who has played the most minutes (2,435 ‘); Valverde holds that medal, with 2,860′. The wings of Birdie have developed in such a way that it has mutated into a Hawk. And his versatility has allowed him to play midfielder and winger.
There, close to the band, he played one of the most important games of the year, the second leg against City. Ancelotti has such confidence in him that that same night he replaced the three in the middle (Casemiro-Kroos-Modric) before the Uruguayan. The odd man out is Asensio, whose renewal is going through a ‘hot phase’ (contract ends in 2023) and his left-hander, a shy one. Although he had a stretch in which he let go and roared with such force that he became indisputable; that fierceness evaporated and ended up not only losing the position, but also disappearing from the onces and summaries. Marco would be delighted to continue in Madrid; to renew, as he has been telling AS, because he feels strong and football to be a starter again. Get that square back.
A marathon
The 2022-23 will be a long-distance race with four long distance runners Determined not to give up. Rodrygo, Valverde, Hazard and Asensio will oppose the starting position on the right wing. The next trident will depend on his pulse, with Benzema, the favorite for the Ballon d’Or as the banner, and Vinicius, in full supernova explosion, staying on the left. It will be a long season, with 38 games in the League, the Champions League, the Cup, the Spanish Super Cup and, if they win on May 28 in Paris, also in Europe and the World Cup. Madrid’s guns, after Mbappé’s ‘no’, are looking for their third gunslinger in discord.