Mbappé takes aim at Arbeloa - and the Real Madrid coach responds

After Real Madrid’s 2-0 win over Real Oviedo, Los Blancos’ head coach Álvaro Arbeloa spoke to the media - and addressed Kylian Mbappé’s controversial comments in the mixed zone.

Mbappé says you told him he’s the fourth-choice striker…

I wish I had four strikers. I don’t know what to say. I don’t have four strikers, and I didn’t say that. He must have misunderstood me - I’m not really sure what to say.

Is there a problem?

If I don’t pick him, he can’t play. I make the decisions - I’m the head coach. I spoke with him beforehand, and I don’t know how he might have interpreted that conversation. He wasn’t supposed to start today because this wasn’t a make-or-break game. We’ve got another match on Sunday, and I’m sure he’ll be the first-choice striker then. A week later, he’ll earn that role again. I decide who plays. I understand that players who don’t play aren’t happy - I get that - but the decision was based on the circumstances. I didn’t want to take any risks. It was the logical thing to do, just common sense.

Mbappé also said the team had structure before and lost it…

If you want, we can pull up the full press conference and break it down. I’d be fine if he sees it that way - he probably scored a lot more goals in the first half of the season than in the second.

Mbappé says he was ready to start…

I said that a player who couldn’t even make the bench four days ago should only be coming on today in the second half. He’ll start on Sunday. Gonzalo [García] deserved the reward of starting today. I understand that those who don’t start aren’t happy, but as long as I’m sitting in this chair, I make the decisions. If they like it, great. If they don’t like it, they can wait for the next game.

Mbappé was jeered when he came on…

I always ask for the fans’ support for my players.

Vinícius was also whistled. How do you fix that?

They’ll turn it around, I’m sure of it. They’re capable of it. They’re two key pillars of this team, the most decisive players we have. The club has put its faith in them. The fans are demanding - when they get back to playing the way they know how, the applause will return.

Are you suffering instead of enjoying this?

You can’t suffer when you’re at Real Madrid. It’s not a situation where we’re comfortable - we know the standards at this club. We’re having another bad season, and that makes things harder. We have a big responsibility. We need to go to Seville and give everything we’ve got until the very end - the fans deserve that.

Big ovation for Oviedo’s Santi Cazorla

What can I say? He was a fantastic teammate. We won a lot together. He has a wonderful family. He’s one of the most talented players Spanish soccer has produced - we’ve all enjoyed watching him. It’s rare, but as a person, he’s just as great as he is as a player. It was an honor to share the field with him.

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