Federico Valverde is hard to pin down - and that's the appeal. The Uruguay midfielder has bounced around the pitch for Real Madrid in his five full seasons at the club, plugging holes where needed, and settling into positions that often seem out of his comfort zone. But every time he has been asked by first Zinedine Zidane and then Carlo Ancelotti to do a job, Valverde has passed with flying colours.
Still, for all of his adaptability, there remained a sense that this versatile talent had more to give; he just needed to find somewhere on the pitch to stay long-term. And this season, Ancelotti might just have unlocked it, with Valverde now thriving in a deep-lying role within Madrid's modified 4-4-2.
Although his goals, assists and chance creation numbers are all down, Valverde has become the midfielder he was always meant to be - the unsung hero in the middle of the park who will be crucial if Los Blancos are to win their 15th European Cup in Saturday's Champions League final at Wembley Stadium.