Real Madrid

José Rodríguez made his competitive debut for Real Madrid in El Collao and he marked his debut by scoring the team’s third goal. He said that the team’s victory was more important than his goal: “I am very happy for the team; the goal does not matter to me. The really important thing is that we won at a difficult ground. I was very excited when they called me up to play for the first team. I am from Alicante and so to make my debut there was an extra motivation, especially alongside such great players. It has been incredible for me”.

The reserve player explained what Mourinho said to him before he went onto the pitch and how Carvalho congratulated him during the match: “Mourinho told me to stay calm and play like I do in my usual team. I get along well with all of the squad but Carvalho is like a father to me in the dressing room”.

José Rodríguez was also cautious about his development within the club and the Cup match: “You have to take it bit by bit, my team is Castilla. I am proud to be in Real Madrid’s reserves. This round of the Cup is not over yet; we still have to play the second leg, but we have done well so far. We have achieved a very good result”.