Arda Güler's journey in the spotlight at Real Madrid, between shyness and languages: "Now... I don't know, I just want to play."

"Speak slowly, he's a little nervous." And out comes Arda Güler , with the shy smile of someone making his debut in a mixed zone, surrounded by questions and cameras. He's been at Real Madrid for two seasons, but for the 20-year-old Turk this Club World Cup is proving to be a small revelation on and off the pitch. The arrival of Xabi Alonso seems to have made him the new center of gravity for the Whites, putting in a consistent second half against Al Hilal , and the club, aware of the Turkish passion generated on social media, opened the doors to the media spotlight for him before Pachuca for the first time since his presentation press conference and repeated his presence after his goal against the Mexicans.

" In English ," he asks the reporters. His answers are concise, short, and in an easy-to-understand accent, keeping his hands behind his back. He maintains an upright position to ease the tension. " What do you want ?" he jokes in Spanish when asked for a word in the language. "So everything's fine with the manager now. Let's see ," he laughs at his Spanish. "Better a center than a wing," he analyzes, and when the reporter insists on his position, he mixes languages ​​out of the logical nervousness of the moment: "Now... I don't know . He doesn't know, he doesn't know. I just want to play. Good feeling ." And he leaves, thanking the media for their treatment in his debut as a Madrid spokesperson.

A few hours later, Alonso gave him a starting spot in the second match of the World Cup. Güler shone , scored his first goal of the tournament, was the linchpin of Madrid, and returned to the mixed zone more relaxed, gesturing and laughing when he saw the journalists again. " In Spanish ?" he joked at first. "Very good pass from Trent, very good pass from Gonzalo, very good entry... And very good," he responded about his goal, also laughing. "Happier because I'm in the middle," he analyzed again in timid Spanish.

Alaba and Rüdiger, keys

These two mixed experiences with Arda Güler offer insights into some of his two years at Madrid. Months of not playing, months of enduring, months of improving physically, and moments when he seemed to have no understanding with Ancelotti: "I see a player who works, learns, and wants to play. This is a small part of the time I spend with him, and he spends a lot of time with other people. This is a lack of communication ," the Italian declared in February of this year, when the Güler case was making headlines.

That lack of communication was reflected in Arda's early life. He arrived at the club at 18, speaking little English and no Spanish. He stuck with David Alaba and Antonio Rüdiger , who spoke some Turkish after growing up with immigrants in Vienna and Berlin, and with Thibaut Courtois , who played with Arda Turan at Atlético and knew a few words, but he struggled.

In the locker room, they call him "Arda Abi" for another communication problem. The Turk, "a very, very polite boy," they say in Valdebebas, started calling veterans like Luka Modric "Abi," a word that means "older brother" in Turkish, and some in the locker room believed it was used for everyone. "Good morning, Arda Abi," they call him now.

So after two years, 'Arda Abi' has jumped from the bench to the pitch and from the locker room to the mixed zones. He's taking the spotlight for Real Madrid, and Xabi Alonso is grateful: "He's one of those players who needs to be close to the ball. The more touches he gives, the better he'll play. He had a great game the other day," the coach stated.

"There's a lot of Arda left," Güler responded in his final remarks to the media. A weekend that thrusts him back into the spotlight.