Mundo Deportivo reports that Takefusa Kubo was once again left out of the squad against Olympique Lyonnais at Anoeta, which is hardly news anymore given how often it has happened this season. For the Japan international, who started the campaign in good shape, this is the fifth time he has either been left out of the matchday squad or watched Real Sociedad's game from the sidelines in a training bib.
He has missed five of 15 matches, meaning he has not featured in a third of the games. He has also started only a third of the matches, five in total, with three of those coming in the first four league rounds. In other words, he has started only twice in the last 11 games.
His current situation is difficult. He has played fewer than 400 minutes in total. Guedes, for example, has played twice as much, and Ander Barrenetxea has logged a similar amount. Kubo ranks 18th in the squad for minutes played, ahead of only Luken Beitia, Héctor Fort, Pablo Marín, Marchal, Ayien, Arsen Zakharyan and Jon Pacheco, all of whom are either at the very end of the bench or have been injured.
Even reserve goalkeeper Unai Marrero is ahead of him after the European matches. The latest player to overtake him in these rankings is Job Ochieng, his rival for a place, who is increasingly favored by the coach and is at least more consistent. Against Olympique Lyonnais, Ochieng was brought on before Kubo; Pablo Marín also came off the bench, while Kubo did not, leaving one substitution unused. Four wingers were introduced before Takefusa Kubo.
To make matters worse, when asked about his situation, Pellegrino Matarazzo had a few words of warning for the Japan international. He said he had spoken with Takefusa Kubo some time ago, hoping he would offer more across the board to keep getting opportunities. "The conversation with Takefusa Kubo was a long time ago, right? After that, he played and scored in the Málaga match. Takefusa Kubo has had several good performances. We have many players in good form, everyone wants to win, and sometimes you see a more suitable profile.
Performance is certainly important, and every aspect matters. The most important thing is what you bring to the team when you play. Takefusa Kubo is very talented, and he must make good use of the minutes he gets in order to earn more. He will get another chance, perhaps on Sunday. Pablo played today because we would drop into a back five when defending deep. Takefusa Kubo is not the most suitable option in a back-five system.
Pablo has to attack the back line alongside Job Ochieng to create space for Luka and Mikel. He has the ability to run up and down the pitch. We also didn't use all five substitutions because, generally, if everything is going well defensively, I don't change defensive players. The team was functioning very cohesively at that point, and I didn't see any need for adjustments," Pellegrino Matarazzo explained.
Before the November international break, Takefusa Kubo will have a chance to prove himself against Rayo Vallecano, after which he will join up with the Japan national team. That call-up will be shorter than the last, as the Asian Cup has been postponed. Now he needs to step up and regain the high level he showed for Real Sociedad not long ago.