Real Madrid superstar center midfielder Fede Valverde had a brutal World Cup, as he and Uruguay were knocked out of the group stages and were the most disappointing team of any country at the competition, failing to live up to the standard set by the nation at the previous World Cups since the great era resumed in 2010.
Valverde was horrendous in the final game of the group stages, a 1-0 defeat to Lamine Yamal and Spain that confirmed Uruguay's elimination. He even got hooked off pretty early in the second half, hammering home how bad of a flop he was at the World Cup whereas his other incredible Real Madrid teammates Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior, and Kylian Mbappe are squarely in the running for MVP of the tournament.
There were concerns about Fede's attitude, too, that began to pop up in the media, with reports circulating that key players on Uruguay had gone against Marcelo Bielsa, turning on the iconic manager over issues with the training being too intense.
Fede Valverde had a bad reputation after the Xabi Alonso firing
Even though Bielsa can come off as abrasive and has issues of his own, the manager surprisingly came to Fede's defense in public, even at a time when Real Madrid fans were questioning his work ethic and mentality after Xabi Alonso's firing and the dust up in the locker room with fellow midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni.
Marcelo Bielsa told reporters recently, via Madrid Xtra, that there were actually no problems in the locker room with Fede Valverde, “I never had any problems with Valverde. I’ve never made more concessions than I did for Valverde, because he deserves it.”
Valverde's national team manager also opened up about the concerns that popped up early in the Real Madrid season under Xabi Alonso about him not wanting to play certain positions besides the midfield. And as it turns out, Fede did not cause any headaches for Bielsa there either.
Bielsa said, “I told Valverde that I might play him as a RB, and I listed 5 LW’s he was able to stop with Real Madrid. I also told him he might play as a RW, or in his main position as a midfielder. His response was: ‘Play me wherever the team needs coach’.”
Since Bielsa is on the outs with Uruguay, he has no reason to sugarcoat things or protect Valverde, and, if anything, the incentive for him would be to throw high profile playersl like the Real Madrid star under the bus. But Bielsa tells it like it is, and for all that has been said about Fede's attitude, he is a team player, even when he is not playing well on the pitch at this World Cup. Jose Mourinho will not have issues here.
Add us as a preferred source on Google