Former Real Madrid director drops brutal verdict on another trophyless season: ‘Not winning anything is a failure’

On Arbeloa, Mbappe and Vinicius

Attention has also turned towards the managerial situation, with Alvaro Arbeloa under scrutiny.

Arbeloa is facing uncertain future at Real Madrid. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

Mijatovic offered his view by recognising both the difficulty of the job and the effort shown so far:

“Alvaro joined us midway through the season. I liked Xabi Alonso, but he had a very difficult task.

“No one can take away his enthusiasm, his dedication, and all the energy he put into every game. We’ll see what happens.”

Perhaps the most striking part of his analysis came when discussing the squad itself.

Despite criticism aimed at stars like Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr., Mijatovic dismissed the idea that they are the root of the problem.

Instead, he pointed to a deeper issue within the team,

“Mbappe came here to score goals, and he’s doing just that. Vinicius has had good seasons and steps up in big games, though he was unlucky the other day.

“He’ll have to change his attitude, and I’ve said that many times before. They accused me of having something against the kid, but there are things I don’t like.

“That doesn’t diminish his importance to the team. Madrid lacks a leader on the field. The top scorer isn’t always the leader.

“For example, Zidane was the best for a while, but France’s leader was Deschamps. Now we need a Hierro, a Ramos, a Raúl.

“Someone who can do two or three things on the field and pull everything together.

A leader, a coach on the field. Madrid has excellent players, but I don’t see a figure who’ll say, ‘What the hell are you guys doing,” he concluded.

Source: AS