The most media-driven Madridism started last year like a hurricane of euphoria. From his platform at AS and El Chiringuito, Tomás Roncero was making predictions as if there were no tomorrow. "This year we're winning the septuple", he proclaimed.
Roncero had the confidence of someone who believes they've seen the future. Super Cup, La Liga, Copa del Rey, Champions League, Club World Cup, UEFA Super Cup... and even the Bernabéu Trophy if necessary. Everything would fall to one side and nothing and no one could stop Real Madrid.
Real Madrid had just won La Liga and the Champions League and Roncero believed that, by adding Mbappé to that team, Real Madrid would be unbeatable.
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A year later, reality has been different. Very different. The supposed fortune teller, turned into a meme for many rivals, has ended the season renouncing his great idol, Vinícius Júnior, whom he himself helped elevate to the highest level.
Dreamed septuple... and total collapse
The list of Real Madrid's failures this season is as long as Roncero's euphoric speeches in September. The Spanish Super Cup slipped away against Barça. In the Copa del Rey, Madrid also fell to Barça.
They lost La Liga with weeks to spare. In the Champions League, Manchester City reminded them once again who's in charge. No sign of the septuple.
Barça's strolls in the four clásicos, with Lamine Yamal's rise to the top.
That's not to mention the embarrassment in the Club World Cup, which no longer excites Madridists themselves, or the invisibility of certain players at key moments. A series of disappointments that has exposed many, but Roncero in particular.
Backfire with Vinícius
Roncero was the first to jump on the "Vinícius, Ballon d'Or" train. "The most unbalancing player in the world" and "the new emblem of Real Madrid," he said.
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He defended him tooth and nail, even when his performance in big matches didn't justify so much praise. Everything changed at the end of the season.
In the latest shows, the tone changed. Roncero began to point at Vinícius for his attitude, for not making a difference when needed. Above all, for the tensions he's generating in the locker room with his salary demands.
The situation has exploded. Roncero, who dreamed of the Brazilian inheriting Cristiano's number 7, now doesn't rule out his departure. "The club is bigger than any player," he said in his latest appearance.
Fortune teller... of memes
If there's one thing this season has made clear, it's that Roncero wouldn't make a living as a seer. He has missed every one of his predictions.
No sign of the septuple. Of white supremacy, only smoke. Vinícius's dominance, just empty words.
Real Madrid has collapsed under its own weight and Roncero has sunk with it.
That's what happens when you make up stories, believe them, only for reality to put you in your place. When judgment is based on illusion, wishes, and dreams, these things happen.
The "¡Hala Madrid!" with which he signed his predictions now sounds more like a plea than a proclamation. Because when you bet everything on seven... and don't win any, all that's left is to bow your head.