Jose Mourinho pushed for the signing of Ibrahima Konate for his first season back at Real Madrid, and his persistent pressure on the board to bring in a central defender showed that he did not trust the existing core completely.
If reports are to be believed, the manager is pushing hard for the signing of yet another defender this summer, and Eder Militao is the only current defender whom he rates highly.
The players worst hit by his stance, thus, are Dean Huijsen and Raul Asencio, both of whom seemingly are not central to Mourinho’s plans.
While the manager is pushing for the latter to leave, however, the former continues to have a chance of making his presence felt.
Huijsen’s strong stance
Huijsen is prepared to win his place back. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
As reported by Diario AS (h/t Madrid Xtra), Dean Huijsen knows that his first season as a Real Madrid player did not quite go to plan and that he did not enjoy his best campaign by any measure.
He realises that his campaign, performances and consistency were far from perfect and that he has a lot to work on. That, coupled with his exclusion from Spain’s World Cup squad, has lit a ‘fire in him.’
Huijsen is prepared to put the events and disappointments of last season behind him and wishes to start on a fresh page.
He hopes to impress the new manager, Jose Mourinho, and show him why he is so highly rated as a defensive talent.
A strong start
The Spanish outlet further reports that the young defender worked tirelessly during the one-month break he had after the end of last season. Mourinho, in fact, is said to be surprised by Huijsen’s condition.
Can Huijsen impress Mourinho? (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
The player has already begun training under the new manager’s command from Monday and has impressed in the pre-season sessions so far.
He has arrived in excellent touch and fitness and is leaving no stone unturned to prove his point.
Should the Spaniard keep up the same level of performance and training displays, nothing is stopping him from taking a starting spot in Mourinho’s starting XI.
After all, Konate is the only young and fit defender whom Mourinho currently counts on.
