Real Madrid: 4 cornerstone players for the new era

CM Fede Valverde

What more can be said about the breakout season Fede Valverde had for Real Madrid in 2019-2020? He went from a prospect most people outside of Spain (and Uruguay) didn’t know about, to one of the world’s most valuable young players.

The 21-year-old has an engine that never quits and relishes the biggest games. Unlike most young players, Valverde seems to thrive under pressure and does so at a club that can be difficult to play for due to this pressure.

But Fede does everything in his power to be the matchwinner for Real Madrid, even as a center midfielder who does more “dirty work” than creation. His love for the club and ability to make a difference can be most easily seen with his game-winning red-card tackle on Alvaro Morata in the Spanish Supercup Final.

Valverde is the epitome of an unselfish box-to-box midfielder. He defends his lungs out and starts so many counterattacks with a ball recovery, followed by a precise pass. Valverde does whatever he can to support the attack and has even scored a few great goals from beyond the box. The Uruguayan is more than the next big thing; he’s already great. Frenkie de Jong can back that up.