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Real Madrid ace Fran Garcia has appeared to be one of the club's most impressive performers during this summer's FIFA Club World Cup, surprising even the club's fans. The Spaniard has featured in all three of his side's games in the tournament, helping them reach the Round of 16 with relative ease.
Los Blancos were in a protracted pursuit of Benfica star and former academy left-back Alvaro Carreras as they sought to sign a new left-back. Garcia had not impressed much under Carlo Ancelotti and was earmarked for an exit, while regular first-choice Ferland Mendy is out until October through injury.
With there being no other senior left-backs in the squad, Garcia has completed 90 minutes in each of his first three games in the tournament. His consistent showings have not gone unnoticed and have earned him praise for holding down the fort excellently.
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Real Madrid fans have been very impressed with the former Rayo Vallecano man and a number have showered him with praises for his displays via X.
A fan accused people of ignoring the defender's quality displays for the side.
"Everyone casually ignoring the top performance Fran Garcia is putting out there", they wrote.
Another fan attributed his improvement to the quality of coaching under Xabi Alonso.
"Proper coaching setting him straight.", they wrote.
An account pointed out his impressive stats from the first half of the game.
"Fran García won 100% of the duels and completed 100% of the dribbles in the first half vs. RB Salzburg. 🤯 One of the most in-form players under Xabi Alonso. 🔥", they wrote.
A fan pointed to Garcia's qualities, explaining why he can never be useless.
"At what point are we gonna Talk about Fran Garcia. I will never stop saying this. A player with power pace stamina and passion can never be useless I will die on this hill", they commented.
Another fan hailed the defender as being on his way to becoming a key player.
"Fran Garcia has silently been looking very different under Xabi. He keeps this up and he’s gonna be almost undroppable.", they posted.
A fan asked if other fans also think the Spaniard should start all Real Madrid games.
"Am I the only one who thinks Fran Garcia should start all Real Madrid games?", they asked.
A fan questioned why the left-back was targeted by a section of the club's fans, pointing out that he has been good.
"Fran Garcia has been very good. I don’t understand why people are targeting him lol", they posted.
Another fan lauded him for his 'amazing' performance.
"honorable mention for Fran Garcia, he was amazing today.", they wrote.
Fran Garcia is likely to continue to feature for Los Blancos in what is left of the Club World Cup, following their failure to sign any players in his position. They continue to be strongly linked to Bayer Leverkusen star Alejandro Grimaldo and will likely sign a new left-back.
Real Madrid coach shares thoughts on absent star
Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso has spoken publicly about the absence of star forward Kylian Mbappe after his side's win over Salzburg. The Frenchman was absent once more as Los Blancos claimed a 3-0 win to move into the last-16 of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Alonso faced the press after his sides overcame their Austrian opponents, pointing out that he does not know when Mbappe will be back fit. He admitted that he needs the forward, who is one of the world's best players, back to full fitness soon.
“We need Kylian for sure. We want him back as soon as possible, in the best possible shape. We will see, I don’t want to be too optimistic, too early to talk about what’s gonna happen for Tuesday. But we need Kylian. He’s a top top player, one of the best players in the world and hopefully he will be back.”
Mbappe had been expected to be ready to face Salzburg after missing games against Al-Hilal and Pachuca through illness. The 26-year-old remains out, but goals from Vinicius Jr, Federico Valverde, and Gonzalo Garcia gave Real Madrid all three points on offer.
