Real Madrid advanced to the next round of Copa del Rey after beating Alcoyano 3-1 away. However, the performance on the pitch was incredibly poor, with the La Liga leaders at times getting dominated by the third-tier team.
A lot more was expected from players like Fede Valverde. In an ideal world, they would've taken advantage of the opportunity to prove that they deserve to be regular starters. The Uruguayan ended up drawing a lot of criticism from Twitter user Belkace_RM.
"For a second time in a row, Federico was unable to control a match or be the protagonist against a 3rd tier team. The same happened last year. As for the league, whenever he starts, he fades more often than not.
"That's his level. A player as limited as him can't be a starter. He's been here for a very long time and there's no sign of progression.
"Not only that but seems to be very injury prone. That said, all of that is irrelevant, his skill set makes him who he is, a valuable squad player who offers a lot in transition, but cannot be the protagonist.
"He doesn't control the ball well, he's not good in tight spaces, he's not a good dribbler, he doesn't have the vision, his finishing (there's potential here) and assisting isn't there.
"He is exceptional in transition due to his physique, but apart from that, he excels at nothing. That's the problem. He's neither an all-rounder like Modric nor someone who excels.
"What he excels at is being good in transitions and he's somewhat of a hard worker with an incredible physique, but most teams you face nowadays demand you to be good on the ball.
"He just seems too limited. He could potentially become a better finisher, become more confident and take better decisions that come with age but all in all, that's still going to be a squad player level."
This term so far, Valverde has played 20 games for Real Madrid, 13 of them from the start, and has recorded one assist.
