Zinedine Zidane knows where he is. The losses you have or the difficulty that the rival entails does not matter. Real Madrid is always obliged to do their best. Even more so in the Champions League, his fetish competition. That is why he was ambitious on the eve of the round of 16 first leg against Atalanta. «We have the illusion of doing our best, of reaching the final. When we are on the field we always want to win and every time we play it is a final. More now because it is a tie. We know that it is the return, but we think only about tomorrow’s game, “said the Frenchman.
The Whites face the challenge in Bergamo after cutting Atlético five points in the League thanks to the four consecutive victories they accumulate in the domestic championship. “The dynamic is good and we have to continue with what we are doing,” stressed Zidane, who despite the nine injuries his team has, does not admit excuses. «You are talking to me about the casualties, but we have the players who are here. We will always enter the field to win the game. We will never be content with less“He replied when asked whether he would sign a draw against the ‘neroazzurro’ team, taking into account the multiple absences and the possibility of resolving the crossing at the Alfredo Di Stéfano.
Zidane highlighted the virtues of Atalanta. «We know that offensively they are very good, there are very good players. They are very strong physically. I don’t like to compare equipment. Atalanta is a specific team. What I do say is that tomorrow is going to be a good football match, “he highlighted when questioned about whether Gian Piero Gasperini’s block reminds him of that Ajax from Amsterdam who eliminated Real Madrid two seasons ago in the round of 16 assaulting Santiago Bernabéu (1-4). «For us it is a different game, because it is a different rival, which has its specificities in the field and we have to answer the game that we are going to have tomorrow. We have to do our football, play, and nothing else, “he added about the transalpine squad.
He stopped to analyze the plague of injuries that plagues whites. «There is no reasonable explanation. We are all sorry to have injured players. We had a not very normal start to the season, but it is true that we have many casualties, many injured players. It is the situation we have. There are players who are not there and we are disappointed, but we are prepared for this game and we want to continue with what we have been doing lately, to be in solidarity and to create opportunities, “he said.
Finally, he avoided deciding which center of the field is better, if the one made up of Casemiro, Kroos and Modric or the one made up of Zidane himself together with Claude Makelele and Luis Figo in the ‘Madrid of the Galactics’. “Everyone has their things. Today I am the coach of these players and I have the best. Not just these. We know that everyone is important here. I am lucky to have very good players “, he saved.
Kroos: “Mbappé or Haaland? It’s a question for Florentino”
Zidane was preceded in his press conference by the intervention of Toni Kroos. The German, one of the heavyweights of the dressing room, stressed the need to “Doing things more together” in the face of the large number of casualties with which Real Madrid will appear at the Bergamo Stadium. He advocated the midfielder for applying control against a frenetic rival in his football bet. «We want the ball. We are going to face a team in a different way than we know. We have to adapt to the game. They are the eighth of the Champions League, away from home and we will surely have a difficult game, but we will try to play our game, “he said.
The midfielder stressed the importance of Wednesday’s clash. «It is a final for us. For me the Champions begins now. They are the games we want. It is going to be a very difficult game, not only because of the casualties but because they are a rival who plays football very well. Surely we have to defend well tomorrow. That will be very important to achieve a good result, “he stressed.
While Real Madrid struggles to maintain their options in the League and the Champions League, rumors about possible signings continue to run. That is why Kroos was asked about the two fashionable men in European football: Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland. Which one would you keep? «They are two very good players. They can help any team with the quality they have. But tomorrow they will not help me and as I am very focused on tomorrow’s game, this is not my topic. It is a question for Florentino », said the Teuton, who still elegantly dodged another question along the same lines. Who would you rather have in front of you to send a ball in the last minute of a hurried Champions League final, to the French or to the Norwegian ?: «Benzema».
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