Fran Garcia, Real Betis player
Photo by Evan Treacy/Getty Images
Real Madrid had an eventful summer transfer window headlined by superstar arrivals.
With a new manager, a new setup and several new players joining the dressing room, the hope was that Los Blancos would turn a new leaf and put an end to their recent trophyless run.
A major part of the same revamp was in the player departures that the club facilitated to balance the squad out. One of the big names who left the club, in that regard, was the left-back Fran Garcia who joined Real Betis.
Fran Garcia’s interview
Speaking to the media in a recent interview via Defensa Central, the former Real Madrid full-back clearly opened up on why he left the club in the summer.
“The situation was complicated because I knew the kind of role I had had throughout these years, even though I had ended up playing almost every season I was there.”
“But, well, I understand that another €60 million signing was coming after Álvaro [Carreras], who cost €50 million,” he added.
“I understand that they are going to give that priority to them over a youth academy player, because that is more or less the policy that has been demonstrated over the years,” Garcia concluded.
Marc Cucurella, Real Madrid player
Marc Cucurella’s arrival was the final nail in the coffin for Garcia. (Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images)
The player then spoke on his mentality, the type of player he is and his competitiveness.
“I’m a player who likes to compete. I like to enjoy this beautiful thing that football is and everything that comes with it.”
“I asked the club if they could give me the option to leave, and we started considering different possibilities. Betis was one of them, and in the end, the move happened,” he added on his departure.
Garcia also expressed how it felt to join a new club at this stage in his career and how the change has been pleasant for him.
“The feeling of leaving and having people show you their affection, give you words of gratitude for your time there, including people with whom I spent more or less time.”
“It is all very pleasant. For me, being someone who came through the club and grew up there, it is even more meaningful,” he added.
Fran Garcia, Real Betis player
Fran Garcia is doing well at Real Betis. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)
Garcia was then asked to detail how his transfer to Real Betis unfolded, to which he said,
“It all happened very quickly. They called me at night, the next morning I packed everything, and the following day I went to Germany with the squad because they already knew that I was going to move.”
Finally, the left-back recounted how his time at Real Madrid was very special on both an individual and a collective level.
“I found myself in a special situation where, in my first year there, we won the league, the Champions League and the Super Cup.”
“It is a season that leaves a huge mark on you in terms of trophies and in terms of the dreams you have chased since childhood,” he added.
“Being able to achieve all of that in your first season is something very special,” Garcia concluded.
A picture shows the Real Madrid logo at the Spanish club's training facilities of Valdebebas in Madrid on March 20, 2019. (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL / AFP) (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images)
A picture shows the Real Madrid logo at the Spanish club's training facilities of Valdebebas in Madrid on March 20, 2019. (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL / AFP) (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images)
With the extended international break taking centre-stage and club football out of the picture, Jose Mourinho and Co. continue to work hard to identify where Real Madrid have been going wrong so far this season.
Los Blancos have already lost two games, after all, and there is a real case to be made that they have underperformed even in their wins.
Amidst the distraction of the international break and the club-level crisis Mourinho and Co. are in, a third topic of interest has come to the fore – a leaked design of the first team’s kit for next season.
Return to a classic
While the 2026-27 season is still in its infancy, Footy Headlines have come out with a leaked design and prediction of Real Madrid’s 2027-28 away kit and the design hits the right chords.
There has been early information that Adidas will return to the classic black and white combination for the away kit, and the leak reinforces the same idea by providing a visual cue.
The 2027-28 away kit returns to the club’s traditional and retro colour combination with black being the primary colour and white being used as the highlights including the collar and the sleeves.
Leaked images of the 2027-28 away kit (Photo credit: Footy Headlines)
Notably, the kit is expected to have Adidas’ Trefoil logo instead of their usual performance logo, similar to this season’s away kit. It even marks the fourth consecutive season that the Trefoil logo makes an appearance in one of the team’s kits.
Beyond the colour combination and the logo itself, however, the jersey does have a clear standout which is the incorporation of a sash. The sash will be a subtle purple diagonal stripe across the front of the kit and is traditionally associated with Castille, the historical region where Madrid is located.
The kit is officially expected to be launched in the summer of 2027, and there may be several modifications to the initial leak presented.
The theme, however, can be largely concluded with a reasonable degree of confidence. From the first glance, it could well be a very special kit that turns the clock back for Los Blancos.