Fede Valverde has been Real Madrid’s unsung hero for years. Players who run for other people, players who fill in the gaps.
The 27-year-old midfielder hit a stunning hat-trick to put City 3-0 down at the Santiago Bernabeu last Wednesday and has thrust himself into the headlines by completing an improbable climb in the Champions League last-16 second leg at the Etihad on Tuesday.
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The first treble of his career – either with Real Madrid or Uruguay – ended with a makeshift circle of honor, the presentation of a signed match ball to his youngest son Bautista in the stadium car park, and a family photo with his children and wife Mina Bonino.
It’s a memory that will last a lifetime, but one that’s been years in the making.
From failing to impress at Arsenal as a 16-year-old to doubting his own ability, how did the Uruguayan turn himself into a Real Madrid legend?
From “Little Bird” to the epitome of Real Madrid’s spirit
Federico Valverde has scored five goals in Real Madrid’s last three games [Getty Images]
Valverde’s role in the first game against Manchester City is one of the most important decisions for head coach Alvaro Arbeloa.
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Against Jeremy Doku he was Trent Alexander-Arnold’s best friend, protecting the right back without sacrificing his freedom to run forward. The plan relied on goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois playing long balls to the right wing, allowing Valverde to attack the space behind City’s high line.
That’s how the first goal came. Courtois’ long-range effort saw Valverde win the duel with Nico O’Reilly, dribble into the box and finish. City had to look after the almost unknown Vinicius, but Real broke the game open through Valverde on the other side.
For Arbeloa, this performance is not surprising.
In recent weeks, the coach has described Valverde as the epitome of Real Madrid’s spirit, even comparing him to former player Juan Gomez Juanito, who elevated a player to the club’s highest pedestal at the Santiago Bernabeu.
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During his 10 years at Real Madrid, Valverde made nearly 300 appearances and won 11 major trophies, including two Champions League titles.
He grew up near La Union, Montevideo, Uruguay.
His father worked as a security guard at a casino. His mother cleaned houses and sometimes sold clothes to support the family. Money is tight. His first pair of football boots were second-hand and had the toes repaired so they would last longer.
One of his youth coaches nicknamed him “Pajarito” (Little Bird) because as a kid he seemed to be bouncing around with the ball.
His father, Julio, wasn’t too fond of the metaphor. He preferred to see his child as a stronger person and shaped his mindset with this in mind.
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“He told me that the fight is in the blood,” Valverde said. “Even today, he pushes me. He tells me to take more shots and keep improving.”
From failing to impress at Arsenal to attracting the attention of Real Madrid
Support always comes from home. His parents and his three older brothers are his biggest fans.
“I see them working all the time,” Valverde once said. “It was tough. My parents did everything they could to get me to play football.”
His mother Doris was the emotional center of the family and organized his first trial with Penarol. He eventually left school early to pursue the sport, completing his primary education but not secondary school. This decision was made together as a family.
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In training, he was quiet and shy. In fact, the tireless runner he is today didn’t always exist. As a teenager, Valverde didn’t like running. He believed that talent was enough.
“I thought I had Maradona’s qualities,” he later admitted. Then one day a youth team coach replaced him because he wasn’t following up. Valverde has changed.
Before Real Madrid showed up, there was another possibility. At 16, he spent a week training with the Arsenal first team in London.
For a teenager from Montevideo, it felt surreal: the facilities, the Premier League stars, the scale of it all.
He spoke no English, so Emiliano Martinez, Arsenal’s young goalkeeper at the time, helped translate the instructions and explain the drills. He thought he had found his club and his place in the world. But he failed to convince Arsenal.
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Instead, two tourists arrived at his hotel during the South American Under-17 Championship in Paraguay. They are from Real Madrid.
Federico Valverde joined Real Madrid in 2017 and one of his first games for the senior team came against Manchester United in a pre-season match in the United States in July 2018 [Getty Images]
Valverde heard their side of the story as he wiped away tears after losing the final of that match.
Although President Penarol wanted him to stay and develop for a while, his mother pushed for the move. This is the move the family has been waiting for.
Moving to Madrid came with another shock. A day in the Castilla locker room [Real Madrid B]Valverde looked around and saw Gucci belts, designer wallets and expensive watches. Then he looked at himself. A cheap T-shirt.
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“That’s when I realized,” he later said, “that I was nobody here.”
After one season with Castilla, he was loaned to Deportivo La Coruña. The year in Galicia proved to be crucial. There he learned how to live on his own and deal with criticism, and grew as a football player and a person.
There were setbacks along the way. Being left out of Uruguay’s 2018 World Cup squad was one of the biggest blows of his career. He remembers returning home feeling ashamed and thinking he had let down his family and friends.
Even his first months at Real Madrid were fraught with doubts. The fear of making a mistake made him hesitate.
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The person who helped him through that moment was his then-partner Mina Bonino. “If you’re at Real Madrid, it’s for a reason,” she told him. “Stop hiding away. Enjoy football like you did when you were a kid.”
Gradually, with the help of psychologists and mental coaches, and the confidence of coach Lopetegui, who gave him his Real Madrid debut, Valverde rediscovered that freedom.
“I was not born a right-back”
Federico Valverde scores Real Madrid’s first hat-trick in Champions League last 16 first leg against Manchester City [Getty Images]
In the 2021-22 season, he played a decisive role in Real Madrid winning the Champions League.
Around the same time, he and Mina were expecting their second child. What was supposed to be a joyful moment turns into a nightmare when doctors warn the pregnancy is at serious risk and the baby may not survive.
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Valverde made an emotional exit, fighting the chaos of the moment. Publicly strong, privately struggling.
After a few weeks, the scans improved. Their son Bautista was finally born healthy in June 2023.
Under Xabi Alonso, Valverde has struggled at times to find his natural place in the team.
At times he was used in unfamiliar roles, including at right-back. At one point, he openly admitted his frustration. “I was not born a right-back,” Valverde told a news conference.
For a while, Valverde seemed more focused on resuming his natural midfield role than taking on the responsibilities that come with being one of Real Madrid’s captains.
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Arbeloa moves him back into midfield and lets him fly so he can transform himself into the player we saw on Wednesday night.
