Chronicle Real Madrid catches a breath and eases anxiety on the way to another final
He pushed the ball into the net, ran angrily towards the corner and received the hug of all his teammates.
Finally, three months later, he was enjoying a goal again.
At that moment,
Fede Valverde
gave himself two blows to the chest and raised both hands to the sky.
From the bench, both the substitutes and the members of
Carlo Ancelotti
's coaching staff raised their hands looking for a gesture of complicity with the 'charrúa'.
The emotion of his celebration and the encouragement received explained how important the goal was for the midfielder.
They are not being easy months for him.
The '
Pajarito
', turned into a 'Falcon' for much of 2022, came to the
Qatar World Cup
break in the best form of his career.
"
He is one of the three best players in the world
," said
Toni Kroos
.
Big words.
After a 21-22 end of the season that elevated him to the European elite, with an assist in the Champions League final included, the Uruguayan began the current campaign on a roll.
He scored
eight goals
between August and November and set his eyes on his lifelong dream: a
World Cup
with Uruguay.
However, the Qatari tournament was painful for the sky-blue.
They drew against
South Korea
, lost to
Portugal
, and the win against
Ghana
was insufficient to qualify for the round of 16.
Stick for the country and for a Valverde who aspired to lead his team with the best on the planet.
"
It affected me
. You go with the dream of a child and it makes you very sad. You feel that everything you have worked for has been for nothing," admitted the footballer at the press conference against
Al-Ahly
.
After the semifinal, his face reflected the joy of the goal: "I'm very happy. After so many games that's when I felt most comfortable.
I focused on valuing every moment of this tournament
. I'm very happy with the team's performance," he said. , and had words of affection for his teammates: "I thank my teammates who
are helping me at this time, which is not so good
. They are always there to give me a word of encouragement. It was very special to score the goal and celebrate with them. Now we have to rest and work well to win the final".
The goal against Al-Ahly is the
ninth of the season
for Valverde, the first since November 2 last year.
He three months ago.
Until then it had been a cannon without brake.
He scored against
Celta
on matchday two of the league, against
Mallorca, Leipzig and Atlético de Madrid
in three consecutive games in September, and in October he repeated with another three goals in a row against
Barça, Elche and Sevilla
before scoring
his last against
Celtic
. goal of the year
Eight goals to get closer to victory in his famous personal bet with Ancelotti, who had challenged him to reach
ten goals
throughout the course.
The Italian considered changing his offer to 15, but kept it, and the goal in Rabat leaves the Uruguayan just one goal from his goal.
Despite the difficult month of January that Valverde has gone through on a personal and professional level, Ancelotti has continued to keep faith in him.
It's not one of his right 'eyes' for a reason.
The player who, for the Italian, best defines the concept of "
modern footballer
".
Of the 12 games played since the return of the World Cup, the Uruguayan has only been a substitute in two: Cacereño and Valencia.
"He has played a good game, with quality and naturalness. Little by little he returns, like the rest," said the transalpine coach.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
Know more
Fede Valverde
real Madrid