Real Madrid told they made a ‘huge’ mistake not signing Gunners star and ‘might regret’ it
Real Madrid have been told they made a “huge mistake” by not signing Martin Zubimendi ahead of Arsenal in the summer transfer window.
The Gunners invested £60 million to bring Zubimendi to the Emirates Stadium from Real Sociedad in July after the Spanish international’s move to the Premier League failed the previous summer.
Zubimendi has impressed in midfield since Arsenal this season, with Mikel Arteta’s side leapfrogging Liverpool into first place ahead of the international break.
And the former Sociedad star took his club form onto the international stage by shining for Spain in their 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Georgia on Saturday.
Speaking about Real Madrid’s failure to sign Zubimendi over the past two summers, the Cadena SER » said the panel after the weekend’s match.
Spanish journalist Julio Pulido said on the Carrusel Deportivo broadcast: “If he (the Real Madrid sporting director) sees the last matches of the national team and the level of performance of Zubimendi, he might regret having decided not to invest in him for Real Madrid.
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“I think this play from Xabi Alonso’s Madrid would be fundamental today.”
Another panel member, Antonio Romero, added: “It’s a huge mistake that Real Madrid didn’t sign Zubimendi for 60 million after spending 120 million on Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouameni.”
Zubimendi almost moved to Liverpool a year earlier, but ultimately decided to stay in Spain for another year before taking the plunge abroad.
Explaining why he decided to reject Liverpool and wait for another opportunity, Zubimendi said. The Guardian after completing his move to Arsenal: “When an offer comes in, the first question has to be whether he should stay at Real.
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“And it wasn’t the right time (to leave). I stayed and it was a difficult season but I learned a lot. I wanted to move forward, gain this weight after the others left.
“I always tried to choose the right moment and I’m happy with how it turned out in the end.
“I had watched Arsenal and I loved everything I saw, in terms of the passion, the youth, the feeling you got when you watched them.
“And when Mikel Arteta called me… Well, if you’ve ever spoken to him you’ll know he can be very convincing.
“He is crazy about football, crazy about having everything under control, trying to get something out of every little detail.
“He is very clear about everything and the proposal he had was the best for me.”
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