Valverde cements himself as a fixture in Mourinho's Real Madrid double pivot

Some players stand out because they show up in the photo when the goal goes in. Others stand out for everything that happens beforehand, those fifteen or twenty invisible actions that let the team breathe. Federico Valverde clearly belongs to the second group, and the start of the 2026/2027 season is proving it beyond doubt at Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid.

The Uruguayan settled into the double pivot in Madrid's midfield and has stayed there ever since, switching partners depending on the opponent but never dropping his level. In the first two LaLiga matches, wins over Espanyol and Real Sociedad, he shared that zone with Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva. In both games Valverde played the full 90 minutes, which already says a lot about how much trust the coach places in him.

His contribution wasn't limited to running and recovering the ball, though he excelled at that too: tackles, interceptions, tight marking and constant pressure on opponents. Against Real Sociedad, he also provided a key assist, setting up Kylian Mbappe's 1-0 goal, the Frenchman's first of the season.

A role that keeps growing match by match

For the games against Malaga and Betis, matchdays 3 and 4 of the league, his partner in the engine room changed: Frenchman Eduardo Camavinga took over that role. That's when Valverde began showing another side of his game, acting as a driving force in the opponent's half, carrying the ball through central channels and threading passes between the lines that break down the opposition's defensive shape. He isn't just a distributor from deep, he's also the one pushing forward when the team needs to break down a low block.

Against Malaga he delivered another standout performance, good enough to draw applause from a teammate, Aurelien Tchouameni, which also speaks to how he's viewed inside the locker room. He played 77 minutes in that match before being replaced by Bernardo Silva, while against Betis he logged 82 minutes before Carlos Espi came on, right after the Andalusian side had scored to make it 1-0.

His Champions League debut against Inter also saw him take center stage, playing all 90 minutes in a midfield shared with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jude Bellingham. Then in matchday 5 of LaLiga against Rayo Vallecano, he started again alongside Bernardo Silva, though this time he only played the first half. With the team already up 3-0, Mourinho opted to rest him and brought on Camavinga.

The Portuguese coach himself left no room for doubt when asked about the Uruguayan's ideal position, making it clear exactly where he sees him on the field.

For me, Valverde is a midfielder, no doubt about it.Jose Mourinho

The team's results back up that approach: Real Madrid won five of their first six matches of the season, and Valverde was a constant presence throughout, both defensively and going forward. With different partners and different minutes depending on the match, the Uruguayan has become the kind of player Mourinho refuses to leave out of the lineup under any circumstances.