Iker Casillas: People are tired of me as I've been at Real Madrid for 15 years

Iker Casillas in action against FC Basel 1893 at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu

Iker Casillas sounded fairly philosophical about the mixed reaction he has received from the Real Madrid fans of late. He was whistled recently but received a better response in the home win over Athletic Bilbao.

The Real Madrid captain was playing his 484th match for Los Blancos and moved up to the eight spot in most all-time La liga appearances.

Repetitive face for 15 years

He said, “It’s important for people to be with the team. The players have more confidence when they feel wanted. And the players respond to the fans’ appreciation. I can understand that people are tired of my face because I’ve been here for 15 years. But this is my own doing. I’ve taken a small place in the history of Madrid.”

The start of the season was tough for the 33-year-old goalkeeper but his performances have improved in the last three outings against Villareal, Ludogorets and Athletic Bilbao, and it looks like he is slowly getting back close to his best.

Clean sheet as important as scoring goals

He also talked about the win over Bilbao, stating that not giving away a goal was as significant as scoring five goals.

“The clean sheet is important because we’ve been on a run of conceding goals and I feel like we’ve got the support of the people. This is what everyone wants. Athletic didn’t stop and the result could have been different. We’ve still not cut points on the leaders though. We try to stay detached and not pay attention to Atletico, the champions.”

When asked about Ronaldo’s goal scoring and his hat-trick record, Casillas remarked, “He’s shown the player he is. He’s breaking all the records.”