In most football teams there is usually a player who is a little more aggressive than the rest, one who does not back out of challenges no matter what the scenario is. Whether it’s in training, a friendly match or a Champions League final, these players will play the game at full throttle, even making dangerous tackles in non-competitive situations.
A modern-day example of this type of player would be Real Madrid centre-back Antonio Rudiger. The German defender is known for his aggressive style of play and quite bizarre antics at times on the field, one lunging into two-footed to challenge on Kylian Mbappe in a training session. The Real Madrid star is one of the hardest players in the game today, but what about the past.
Well, fellow Los Blancos man Steve McManaman once claimed a former Madrid teammate was a ‘genuine psychopath’.
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McManaman Claimed Miguel Salgado Was ‘Genuine Psychopath’
McManaman spent four years alongside the Spaniard at Real Madrid
Perhaps to the surprise of many, that player McManaman was speaking about was Spanish right-back Miguel Salgado. He described his former Real Madrid teammate as:
“The hardest person in the world. A genuine psychopath, even in training.”
Playing in an aggressive manner during his performances for Los Blancos, his former English teammate revealed that he transferred his in-game intensity into training sessions. Unlike Rudiger, there are no clips to display McManaman’s claim, but based on his style of play, the imagination can piece together what it was probably like to be a teammate of his every day.
It may have gone something like the way it did for Juninho in the 1998 World Cup, where the Brazilian was chopped down when through on goal by the Spanish fullback, ruling him out for the final where Brazil became champions.
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Salgado ‘Babysit’ Beckham and McManaman When They Joined Real Madrid
The Spaniard recalls his experiences alongside the two Brits in the dressing room
Salgado was also quite the character in the Real Madrid dressing room though, confessing that he enjoyed taking care of both David Beckham and Steve McManaman when they joined the club. When speaking about his experiences with Beckham, he claimed that he had to ‘babysit’ the English icon, saying:
“I was the one to babysit David Beckham. I did it a lot. It’s because I was the only to speak English. But it was great with Beckham. He was alone in Madrid because his wife was travelling a lot, living in LA and England. So he would call me every day, saying, ‘Let’s go out.’ And my wife was really p*ssed off with the situation – but it was a great time.”
While maybe not as much fun as when he had Beckham alongside him, he also described his time beforehand looking after McManaman when he first joined Real Madrid. Recalling his experience, Salgado said:
“I remember in my first day at Real Madrid pre-season. At that time, we were sharing rooms – and they said, ‘You’re sharing with the English guy, Steven McManaman.’. “ So I was like, ‘Oh my god, why?’ They said, ‘Because you’re the only one who speaks English.’ But in the end, it was great. I was the one to babysit the English guys.”
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