Over the last few weeks, a number of stories have emerged regarding divides and tension in the Real Madrid dressing room. Alvaro Arbeloa has been at the heart of it, with a number of players said to no longer be on speaking terms, and on Thursday, controversy arose between himself and Kylian Mbappe.
After the victory over Real Oviedo at the Bernabeu, Mbappe went public with grievances he has with Arbeloa. The Real Madrid manager responded at the time, and he touched on the subject again during his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday’s trip to Sevilla, as per Diario AS.
“I just saw him. I told him to be calm, that I was taking care of it. I understand that these things may seem news. Everything Kylian said in the mixed zone is something I had already spoken to him before. I give it much more naturalness because, as I always tell my players. I have been there. I understand how players feel in all situations. I know what it’s like to play every match, I know what it’s like to play less, I know what it’s like not to play… I understand how players feel when they don’t play, I understand it perfectly.
“I know Kylian wasn’t happy the other day and I like it. I wouldn’t understand that Kylian Mbappe didn’t want to play for his team even in a situation like this. For me it’s something that has much more normality than what has been given to him. I think that with the situation he was in, for me the best thing was for him to play the second half for a while so I could play on Sunday. Maybe without tomorrow’s game the situation would have been different. But nothing more. I give a lot of normality to what has happened these days. My relationship with Mbappe is still the same.”
Arbeloa: No public with Mbappe going public
Arbeloa admitted that he does not have any problem with Mbappe going public with his annoyances, although he would have preferred the matter to remain behind closed doors.
“Whenever I talk to the players I’m not afraid that they can comment or express any of the conversations we’ve had. When I speak in private, I like it to stay private, but I don’t mind them being able to make public a conversation they’ve had with me. I spoke to him before the game and what I explained to him I explained to you and there is no major problem.”
