Until three months ago, he was not included in the casting. Participating in the pre-season with Chelsea, Kepa Arrizabalaga was not sure of starting with the Blues. Finally, he found himself a starting goalkeeper at Real Madrid. The 29-year-old goalkeeper could hardly have expected such a turnaround. This occurred in a rather tragic manner since the holder of the Merengues, Thibaut Courtois, was the victim of a cruciate ligament rupture. This big fan of Iker Casillas finally made his choice quite quickly when Casa Blanca came knocking on his door. “It’s true that at Chelsea Pochettino wanted me to stay and told me I was going to play, that he trusted me, but I thought a change would suit me. Thomas Tuchel (Bayern Munich coach) called me. We were about to go to Munich. Due to circumstances such as the injury, unfortunately of a colleague, I was given the opportunity to go to Madrid. At the end of the day, Real Madrid is Real Madrid. When Real Madrid calls you, there’s not much to think about.” he explained to Marca.
In competition with Andriy Lunin, Kepa Arrizabalaga quickly found favor with Carlo Ancelotti over the young Ukrainian. On the bench against Almeria a few days after his arrival (3-1 victory), the former Athletic Club then did the job against Celta de Vigo with a narrow 1-0 victory and a first clean sheet. An ideal first with the Merengue jersey: “I tried to wear it (the Real Madrid jersey) with the greatest peace of mind. Little by little, I get to know my teammates and what the coach wants. I have been with all my colleagues for a week and a few days now. I am happy to bring my grain of sand to the field. Little by little, I adapt. I’m the last one to arrive and I want to help. I am happy above all with the clean sheet, the result and the three points. Kepa Arrizabalaga then played the 10 matches that followed. He already has 5 clean sheets for 9 goals conceded with the Madrilenians. The collective results are also positive with 9 victories, 1 draw and 1 defeat with the right-hander on the field. In a good dynamic, he is not challenged and rather responded present in his team’s performances.
A positive assessment, but criticism of its releases
However, some criticism came during the 3-2 victory against Napoli where he was not flawless on Leo Østigård’s goal, but he can count on the support of his coach Carlo Ancelotti. “Each player has his own characteristics. He is fantastic between the posts and he made a superb save in the first half, but he suffers on aerial balls. Nobody is perfect. Not even you. I’m very handsome, but I’m not perfect either.” explained the transalpine technician in a humorous tone. However, this aspect of the game remains the main criticism made of it in the country of Cervantes. Kepa Arrizabalaga is aware that he can do better in his aerial outings. “I agree that I need to improve, because I believe in constant improvement. I analyze myself and I see myself after every match and I analyze every play, every detail. Obviously I have to improve in everything, try to improve every day, constantly. There are sequences, and there are matches with certain actions and in others, there are different ones. You have to adapt, work and improve your performance” he confided to A.S..
If things remain to be perfected, for the moment the player provides a very positive assessment of his Madrid adventure: “I would describe my two months here as very positive. As a team, we are in a good dynamic. We have started the season well, even if it is long and we must continue. We’re on the right track, we’re taking action, and we’re feeling better. The season is long and the grades are given at the end.” Loaned without a purchase option and logically due to return to Chelsea next June, Kepa Arrizabalaga knows that he still has a lot to prove if he wants to hope to stay longer with Casa Blanca: “I said it on the day of the presentation and I still think about it, but we are not at the moment to negotiate my contract. It’s October and in the middle of many games. Now the focus is on every match and every training session.” For the moment in the positive, Kepa Arrizabalaga’s record risks being reclassified following the shock of this Saturday and the Clàsico against FC Barcelona. It remains to be seen whether the Spanish goalkeeper will remain in the green or slip into the red.
