Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa defended his side’s performance at Getafe after their 1-0 defeat on Monday night, and while he admitted his side could have done better, he felt he did enough to win the game. On the other hand, he had harsh words for Franco Mastantuono.
The defeat means that Barcelona’s gap at the top of La Liga remains at four points, which is a gap that Los Blancos can rectify. However, many Madrid players are left wondering if it is possible to fix their opponents given the way their team is playing. Arbeloa was clear that the title was still in play.
“No, now we have no other objective than to win the remaining 36 points at stake. This is Real Madrid and no one quits here. It’s a gap we think we can close.”
Arbeloa: ‘We had more chances than Getafe’
Despite the feeling that Getafe perfected their game plan, as noted by Jose Bordalas, Arbeloa believed his side did enough for the three points.
“We had clear chances against Getafe. We had a chance for Vinicius, a chance for Rudiger, a chance for Rodrygo… We knew the type of game we were going to play. Nothing happened that we didn’t know would happen, and that’s how I see the game.”
“To say ‘it’s impossible for us to play well’ is putting words in my mouth. It’s true that we’ve had chances to score goals; it’s also true that we can play better. I won’t blame my players for their effort. The responsibility to improve our game is mine. If anyone faces defeat, it’s me.”
Arbeloa also had criticism of the manager, although Antonio Rudiger escaped a red card.
“Today we struggled against an opponent who defended very well. We needed to be aggressive in certain situations. We always rely on Vinicius for the easy option, but we need to remain a threat on both sides. There were also many distractions. The referee allowed a game where there was a lot of focus on not playing. But I don’t criticize Getafe because they allow themselves to do what they do.”
Arbeloa is angry with Mastanuono for taking him out
Later, Mastantuono was sent off for refusing, meaning he will miss Real Madrid’s trip to Celta Vigo on Friday. Bookings for Alvaro Carreras and Dean Huijsen will also rule them out of the trip, but Arbeloa felt Mastantuono’s was avoidable.
“It’s unacceptable. The Mastantuono thing will not happen. The yellow cards of Huijsen and Carreras are part of the game. But we will have three important players for Vigo.”
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Development arguments
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Arbeloa had the following reasons for optimism.
“We have good players, some will recover, and we have that intention to keep improving and we can do better. I understand the criticism and the opinion there, but we played a good enough game to beat Getafe. We didn’t know how to use the opportunities we got.”
Los Blancos face Celta Vigo at 21:00 CEST at Balaidos on Friday, with a second chance to reduce the gap on Barcelona to one point, before the Catalans face Athletic Club. After that, Real Madrid will face Manchester City in the Champions League Round of 16.
