Madrid pay tribute to Casillas

REAL MADRID’S players and fans took a moment before yesterday’s 3-2 LaLiga win over Villarreal to send messages of support to former star goalkeeper Iker Casillas as he recovers from a heart attack.

Players posed for a team photo wearing T-shirts that said in Spanish “Iker, we are all with you,” while spectators at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium chanted his name and unfurled a huge banner saying ‘Madrid fans are with you. Stay strong, eternal captain.’

The 37-year-old Casillas fell ill while training for his club, FC Porto, on Wednesday and remains hospitalised after undergoing a catheterisation (a procedure where a thin, hollow tube is inserted into a large blood vessel to test the heart). Porto’s doctors said the former Spain goalkeeper is expected to fully recover, but it is too early to know if he can keep playing professionally.

Casillas was a fan favourite during his 16 seasons with Madrid, where he won three UEFA Champions League and five LaLiga trophies. Casillas also helped Spain to win the 2010 World Cup and two European Championships. He joined Portuguese club Porto in 2015.

Against Villarreal, Madrid bounced back from a 0-0 draw at Getafe and a 1-0 loss at relegation-threatened Rayo Vallecano as they struggle to compete consistently despite the return of coach Zinedine Zidane.

Barcelona clinched the league title last week. With Madrid in a distant third place, all the talk in the Spanish capital is what the club will do in the off-season to shake up its squad.

Zidane left stars Gareth Bale and Luka Modric out of his squad for the match.

“You can interpret it anyway you want, but I have to pick a squad (for the game), nothing more,” Zidane said afterwards. “I am not going to talk about the next season of anyone.”

Little-used striker Mariano Díaz and defender Jesús Vallejo responded to their rare starts yesterday by scoring. Díaz struck twice, while Vallejo got his first goal for the club. Gerard Moreno and Juame Costa scored for Villarreal.

Madrid’s Vinicius Junior returned as a late substitute after two months sidelined with a leg injury.

AP Real Madrid players pose with shirts supporting former club goalkeeper Iker Casillas before a LaLiga match against Villarreal at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, Spain, yesterday. The shirts read ‘Iker, we are all with you’ after Casillas suffered a heart attack while training with Porto on Wednesday.