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da bet nacional： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Even though the very start of their 2019/20 La Liga campaign was rather underwhelming, Real Madrid are slowly but surely rising in form.
After not being able to keep a clean sheet in the first five matches across all competitions this season, they have now done so twice in a row – first against Sevilla at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan and then against Osasuna at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Not to mention that Los Blancos are now enjoying their view from the top of the table as the new league leaders in Spain.
And one man was surprisingly impressive on his debut for Real Madrid.
Alphonse Areola arrived from Paris Saint-Germain on a loan deal and has finally gotten his first appearance defending the royal white of the Galacticos.
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And after his first game, he already has his first clean sheet at the club, something the man he was replacing, Thibaut Courtois, has been struggling with immensely.
The 26-year-old Frenchman, however, was really calm throughout the game, not allowing for any mistakes and snuffing out the danger even before it arrived at his doorstep. Of course, the whole Real Madrid defence worked extremely hard to help him and made sure Osasuna tallied no shots on target, making Areola’s job that much easier.
But now that Zinedine Zidane knows he’s got a reliable plan B between the sticks, he has to use it properly.
Friendly competition among the players in the squad is essential and Areola’s great performance on his debut can only boost the team and motivate Courtois to get better.
Now he knows that there’s a new sheriff in town and he’s coming for his spot if he fails to perform in the future.
For that reason, Areola’s loan was a rather necessary addition to the team and even though Courtois is still very much the number one choice, he will constantly have to be on his toes in order to keep that status intact.
Of course, seeing how this was the Frenchman’s first game for Real Madrid, it’s far too early to jump to any kind of conclusions, but the early signs are definitely good and Zidane should welcome this competition with open arms.
Let’s see what effect it has on the team in the near future.