"He comes to games to watch him, not me" - Fede Valverde says his son is a big fan of Real Madrid teammate
Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde has revealed that his son comes to see his teammate Vinicius Junior and not his dad.
Valverde, 25, has been a key player for Los Blancos since arriving in 2018. Meanwhile, Vinicius also arrived at the club at the same time and become of the first names in Carlo Ancelotti's XI.
The Brazilian has an impressive 74 goals and 71 assists in 251 appearances across competitions. That includes 15 goals and seven assists in 26 games in an injury-plagued season. Valverde, meanwhile, has 19 goals and 20 assists in 243 games across competitions, including a goal and five assists in 39 games this term.
A fan-favourite at the Santiago Bernabeu, Vinicius is apparently also the fan-favourite of Valverde's son. The Uruguayan recently said (as per TNT Sports BR via Madrid Zone) about his son's allegiances:
“I would love to say I’m my son’s idol, but I’m not. It’s Vini. He comes to games to watch him, not me.”
Vinicius and Rodrygo have powered Los Blancos to the top of the pile in La Liga and the quarterfinals in the UEFA Champions League. Although Ancelotti's side felll early in the Copa del Rey, they won their first title of the season in the Supercopa Espana in January, dethroning Barcelona 4-1 in the final.
What's next for Fede Valverde's Real Madrid?
Fede Valverde's Real Madrid are coming off a rather fortuitous 1-1 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg draw at home to RB Leipzig in midweek.
Leading 1-0 from the first leg in Germany three weeks ago, Vinicius opened the scoring at the Santiago Bernabeu midway through the second period. However, Willi Orban scored for the visitors just three minutes later to set up a grandstand finale.
Although Orban came close to scoring another and Dani Olmo hit the woodwork in stoppage time, Madrid survived to reach their 12th Champions League quarterfinal in 14 seasons.
Up next, Real Madrid are in La Liga action at home to Celta Vigo on Sunday (March 10). Ancelotti's side won the reverse fixture 1-0 away in August on matchday three.