For Real Madrid’s 4-0 victory over Granada on Saturday, Carlo Ancelotti opted to make widespread changes from the side that started against Bayern Munich at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday. One player to drop out of the side was Federico Valverde, who has now not started in any of Los Blancos’ last three La Liga matches.
On the previous two occasions (vs Real Sociedad and Cadiz, Valverde was called upon from the bench. However, against Granada, he was not. As it turned out, that is the first time all season that Valverde has not played in a Real Madrid match, with the previous match being the final game of the 2022-23 campaign (vs Athletic Club).
During that time, Valverde has played 50 matches in a row for Real Madrid, accumulating almost 4000 minutes, which is more than any other player across Europe this season.
Hoy terminó una racha tremenda. Por primera vez en la temporada, Fede Valverde no jugó ningún minuto con el Real Madrid.
Fueron 50 partidos seguidos. 1 año entero y casi 4000 minutos jugados, más que cualquier otro futbolista en Europa. Qué máquina que es Federico Valverde. pic.twitter.com/VVVjimThR7
— Juez Central (@Juezcentral) May 11, 2024
It’s a remarkable testament to Valverde’s fitness levels that he has not missed a single match this season because of injury problems, when so many of his teammates have been struck down. He’s truly been a fantastic player for Real Madrid, and he will continue to do so for many years to come.