Marcelo has said he doesn’t know why Isco refused to take the captain’s armband from him during Real Madrid’s 3-0 home defeat to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League.
Upon being replaced by Dani Carvajal in the 74th minute, Marcelo tried to hand the captaincy over to Isco, but the Spaniard, who has been heavily linked with Madrid’s bitter rivals Barcelona, refused.
Could Isco leave Real Madrid for Barcelona? Five things to know
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- Barcelona have shown interest in Isco before, which caused him to sign a contract extension with Real Madrid in 2017.
- Isco’s first start under Santiago Solari came in Madrid’s 3-0 loss to CSKA Moscow on Wednesday.
- Isco has been in the news for refusing to shake Solari’s hand after a 3-0 loss to Eibar.
- This saw him omitted from Real Madrid’s Champions League squad against AS Roma.
- Their 3-0 loss to CSKA Moscow was their heaviest ever Champions League defeat at the Bernabeu.
Isco’s links to Barcelona have been ongoing since last summer when the Spaniard revealed he snubbed an approach from the club before signing an extension with Madrid.
Those links have intensified with Isco’s conduct over the past few weeks. Since Solari replaced Julen Lopetegui as manager, Isco hasn’t had much of a look-in.
The 3-0 loss to CSKA on Wednesday was his first start under the Argentinian. It was also his first start since Madrid’s 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Barcelona.
Since then Isco’s relationship with Solari has been under the microscope, especially after he was believed to have refused to shake the Real Madrid manager’s hand after a 3-0 loss to Eibar and yet again after last night’s incident.
According to the Independent, Marcelo told mixed zone reporters: “I tried to give the armband to Isco, but he told me that I had to give it to Carvajal. I don’t know what the reason for that was.”
When the armband incident occurred, it was reported by AS that Isco turned to the home fans and shouted, “What do you want?” followed by an expletive. However, this is something Marcelo could neither confirm nor deny.
He added: “I didn’t see Isco’s reaction, but I don’t think it was against the fans. We’re here to give our all for this club.
“We’re really hurting, but all we can do is recover and focus on the weekend.”
Where do Real Madrid and Isco go from here?
Following the loss, Madrid will be looking to return to winning ways on Saturday when they welcome 19th-placed Rayo Vallecano to the Bernabeu.
After a disappointing start to the season, Los Blancos now sit fourth in La Liga under Solari with a chance to leapfrog close rivals Atletico into 3rd.
As for Isco, a £620m release clause was included in the contract extension he signed last summer. This will make his departure from Real Madrid all the more difficult, but just how tenable his stay is under the current conditions remains to be seen.
The post Isco refuses Real Madrid captain’s armband amid Barcelona links appeared first on Squawka News.
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