last time federico valverde Bayern Munich played, had an average tie and his team came within seconds of being eliminated from the 2024 UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
In Valverde’s last visit to the Santiago Bernabeu a fortnight ago, he was given a red card, leaving his team with 10 men in the Madrid derby, but he had already scored and, ultimately, watched on. los blancos Beat Atletico Madrid 3-2.
However, the last time the Uruguay international played Champions League football at Real Madrid, he produced the best match of his life, possibly the performance of the entire European season. Valverde scored a truly astonishing, dreamlike hat-trick in 22 minutes against Manchester City on 11 March to help Álvaro Arbeloa’s side win 3–0, their best result of the season so far.
The 27-year-old was unavailable for Madrid’s shock defeat on the island of Mallorca at the weekend, due to a domestic suspension as a result of the derby dismissal. No Valverde, no win.
Now he is back. He has immense responsibility on his shoulders, goal potential in his boots (eight of them and 12 assists this season) and the number 8 on his back.
The last time he faced Bayern, Valverde’s team number was 15.
This change symbolizes two things: Madrid (and Bayern) all-time great Toni Kroos has retired, leaving not only his shirt number vacant, but also a huge amount of brainpower, motivation, match control and authority. Valverde has stepped up, handling both numbers and responsibility, at the worst time for the team.
“I talked to my wife about why I didn’t want to wear that number out of respect for the previous owner, who was Toni,” Valverde told me at the beginning of this season. “If it were up to me, anyone who achieved so much and left his mark on the club would deserve to have his number retired, like they do in the NBA – so that number can be honored forever and Tony can be the last one to wear it.
“My wife made a strong case to convince me that I had to wear it… that I deserved it. Then when Tony also gave me his blessing, I obviously felt more relaxed about it and I told myself this was ‘my’ moment and I should enjoy it every day when I go out to training wearing that number on my back. Just taking every game as if it was my last. Obviously, it was hard in the beginning, but it’s worth it.” Was worth it.”
Cruz, perhaps along with Xabi Alonso, are the alpha males among those who have represented both Bayern and Madrid.
Cruz won everything in five and a half years with Bayern. Then, he doubled: more seasons, garlands, appearances, goals and trophies los blancosHe finished his career by winning the 2024 Champions League with a win over Dortmund in the final – following an ultra-dramatic extra-time defeat to Bayern in the semi-finals, marking the last time the two clubs met.
During the buildup to this rematch, in which Vincent Kompany’s team are seen as favorites by many pundits, Kroos has his sights set on his friend, former teammate and successor in the number 8 shirt as a wild card.
“In what was an average season for Real Madrid, Fede was able to carry the team on his shoulders,” Kroos said. sport build. “Things weren’t right for him either, but neither his pace, nor Man City’s performances, are coincidences for me, because he is simply a guy who not only has the quality, but also the right mentality. Since then, he has been flying all over the pitch. The level of intensity Fede is producing at the moment is really incredible. I hope it continues for a long time.”
A statistical description of the form Cruz is talking about would be Valverde’s seven goals and five assists in his last 12 matches. This is the most creative form of his career so far.
But if you are a football fan, your own eye evidence will serve you better. In fact, he will play very well in the four or five spots in big matches, excelling at his job and saving his teammates if they are overwhelmed numerically or athletically. This is amazing to see.
Our hero didn’t particularly enjoy parts of the spell when Alonso was in charge – mainly because he was repeatedly asked to deputize at right back. He’s willing, he’s capable, but it’s not where he enjoys the most on the pitch.
What would have happened to Valverde’s scoring and assist stats if that had happened dani carvajal Or Trent Alexander-Arnold Were you fit early in the season? Who knows? But since the turn of the year, Valverde, often wearing the captain’s armband, has taken full hold of the season and decided Madrid can still play a part in securing major trophies.
He told me about his willingness to value the team before himself, whether things were going well or not.
“Sacrifice is something that characterizes most South Americans, but I think it is a little more remarkable among Uruguayans,” Valverde said. “I always talk about sacrifice; my father is the one who instilled this spirit in me. I could see it in my mom and dad when they would go to work. Sometimes they wouldn’t eat, so I would eat. That’s the sacrifice.
“I always try to imitate what I saw when I was a kid. Now, it enables me to sacrifice myself for the team. Everything I’ve learned I try to instill in all my teammates because that’s what makes the team more cohesive, develops team spirit, and develops the institution of Real Madrid.”
When I asked Valverde about the Uruguayan’s defining characteristic, he came up with the word “fighter.” Again, you can see it in every glimpse of their competitive spirit. He has the right stuff.
When Valverde lines up at the noisy, frenetic Bernabeu on Tuesday, he will think of how his father cried when the news came that Madrid wanted the promising youngster. He will think about how in Peñarol’s first team he had to live to the same bedroom as three people. By his own admission, he would also remember that when he first arrived at Real Madrid, he had allowed himself to get a little overconfident, a little carried away.
It’s been a long time, almost too distant a memory to feel credible.
I liked his description of what was going through his mind as he prepared to send Bayern home after beating them. He described those tense final moments in the stadium tunnel before going onto the pitch and how he felt.
“First of all, I’m happy. I’m happy and proud to play for the badge on my chest. I think the shirt makes you feel big and strong,” Valverde said. “Obviously, after so many games I don’t feel too nervous. When you come out and see all the people from the tunnel, when you hear the Champions League anthem, when you hear the Real Madrid anthem you forget all the pain in your feet. It’s a combination of a lot of emotions, a big honor; you go out on the field with a hunger to give everything.”
Not that Bayern Munich would have failed to watch Valverde’s copious videos to prepare themselves tactically, but if they read these words of his, they may find themselves well warned. Valverde wants to win. And as he has made it clear, he knows how to achieve it.
