Jurgen Klopp ‘enamoured’ with Real Madrid midfielder Alvaro Arbeloa has ‘stopped trusting’ – report

Jurgen Klopp is a massive fan of Real Madrid midfielder Thiago Pitarch and has been taken aback by Alvaro Arbeloa’s decision not to play him more often in recent matches, according to a Spanish report.

Klopp has long been mentioned in regard to taking over as the Madrid manager at the end of the season.

According to TEAMtalk, the former Liverpool manager is Madrid president Florentino Perez’s top candidate to become Los Blancos boss.

Arbeloa was appointed the Real Madrid manager in January following the departure of Xabi Alonso.

However, it looks unlikely that the Spaniard will stay in the dugout at Estadio Bernabeu next season, with Madrid already out of the Champions League.

Although Madrid are six points behind leaders Barcelona in second place in LaLiga, the Catalan giants, who won the title last season, have a game in hand.

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There have not been too many positives for Madrid this season, but under Arbeloa, a number of Castilla players have made their mark on the first team.

Thiago Pitarch is one such Madrid academy player who has impressed for the first team under Arbeloa.

The 18-year-old midfielder made his official Madrid debut against Benfica in the Champions League in February.

Under Arbeloa, Pitarch has made four starts and one substitute appearance in LaLiga and three starts and three substitute appearances in the Champions League for Madrid.

Jurgen Klopp ‘surprised’ by Thiago Pitarch omission

However, in recent games, the teenager has not been used, which has led to Klopp wondering why, according to a Spanish report.

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Klopp has been ‘surprised by the management of Alvaro Arbeloa’ of Pitarch, with the report stating: ‘Kloppo was enamoured with the performances that the young midfielder put in when he burst into the first team, and it seemed that he was destined to become one of the club’s references.

‘Despite his youth and his inexperience in the elite, we must not forget that he is still in his youth, he did not show the pressure, and he performed wonderfully.’

The report has claimed that ‘Arbeloa has stopped trusting’ the teenager, and ‘Klopp doesn’t understand Pitarch’s disappearance’.

While Pitarch is not guaranteed a place in the Madrid starting line-up, it must be noted that the teenager started against Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.

The teenager played against Manchester City in both legs in Europe’s premier club competition and started against Atletico Madrid in LaLiga last month.

Against Girona in LaLiga on April 10, Pitarch was an unused substitute, as Arbeloa started Federico Valverde, Jude Bellingham, Eduardo Camavinga and Brahim Diaz in a four-man midfield.

The teenager did not come off the bench against Alaves at Estadio Bernabeu on Tuesday either, with Valverde, Bellingham, Aurelien Tchouameni and Arda Guler starting in midfield.

Pitarch is only 18, so it was never going to be a case of the Spain Under-20 international midfielder playing week in and week out for (arguably?) the biggest club in the world.

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