Real Madrid defender experiences turnaround in situation after newfound prominence | OneFootball

Ferland Mendy suffered a massive fitness blow early in Real Madrid’s game against Espanyol last weekend, and his injury forced the manager to take him off the field with just 14 minutes played.

On the bench, Alvaro Arbeloa had two options to replace the Frenchman – Alvaro Carreras and Fran Garcia. While the former would have been a clear favourite a few months ago, it was Garcia who was called up on the night.

The decision made it clear that a lot has changed at Real Madrid, especially in terms of the pecking order in the eyes of the manager. 

Relief for Garcia

Fran Garcia was one of the players who was seen to have no real role in the team as recently as January, with him reportedly even being close to a transfer to Bournemouth.

As reported by AS, however, his situation has taken a complete turn for the better and it has come as a major relief for Garcia who was sweating about his future not too long ago.

Fran Garcia is now ahead of Alvaro Carreras. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

With Carreras and Arbeloa having a falling-out, the manager has not given the player much prominence in recent times and Garcia has not taken over as the second-choice. With Mendy out for the long-term, he is now the first-choice left-back.

Given the chance to prove himself, Garcia did not let the manager down against Espanyol and racked up 11 defensive actions, won 100% of his tackles and completed 83% of his crosses.

The player is now aware that a full-time starting spot is not completely impossible, especially with one competitor injured and the other on bad terms with the coach.

A strong showing in the coming games, needless to say, can make him a strong candidate to retain that advantage even if the manager changes in June.