The 32-year-old Alaves forward Mariano recently accepted an exclusive interview with The Athletic and talked about his experience wearing Real Madrid's No. 7.

In 2017, Mariano joined Lyon from Real Madrid for a transfer fee of 8 million euros. After a successful season with 21 goals and 6 assists in 45 games, Real Madrid spent 21.5 million euros to repurchase Mariano.

After Ronaldo left the team to join Juventus, Mariano took over Ronaldo's No. 7 jersey. After scoring 4 goals in 19 games in a season, Mariano handed the No. 7 jersey to Hazard. In 2023, Mariano joined Sevilla and returned to Real Madrid for 5 years, scoring 7 goals in 70 games.

Mariano said: "No. 7 may be the most important number for Real Madrid players, because legendary players such as Raul and Ronaldo have worn No. 7. I feel great to be able to wear this number, but at the same time it also puts a lot of pressure on me. I am not replacing Ronaldo's position, but it is still an important role."

"Benzema played very well at the time and was Real Madrid's absolute best. For the main player, I come on as a substitute when he is not in good condition. I have no choice but to take chances when he is not in good condition. I don’t know if anyone has seen some misleading media reports and has a different view of me. But Mariano is a hard-working and dedicated football player. This is the impression I want to leave to people.”