Ready To Meet Juve At Home

Champions League certainly got exciting today, didn’t it? Barca and Man City out, Liverpool and Roma in. And tomorrow, it’s out turn to meet Juve at home and hopefully secure our place in the next round.

Training

Everyone available (including Vallejo) trained together. The only exception was Nacho who continues his recovery.

Presser

FROM REALMADRID.COM

Zidane: “We’ll have to put in another great game if we want to get through”
by Alberto Navarro | Photographer: Helios De La Rubia

“We played well, but 50% of the tie will be played at the Bernabéu”, added the Real Madrid coach.

Zinedine Zidane spoke to the press at Real Madrid City the day before the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Juventus at the Santiago Bernabéu (Wednesday, 8:45pm CEST). The coach had the following to say about the Champions League tie: “The 0-3 result will not change things for us. It’s another game and what happened, happened. It was a good game, but there is still 50% of the tie to be played. We will have to put in another great game to pass through. I’m only interested in tomorrow’s match and I only think of my team and how we need to play another great game to qualify.”

“We have one final and it is tomorrow. Then we will see if we get through, and then who we have to face, but we must not think beyond tomorrow’s game. We want to show that we are a great side, but we have not won anything just yet. We are regaining our confidence, the goals and our overall game. We have a lot of ambition and we are determined to continue at the top level. ”

Favourites for the Champions League title?
“I’m not interested in talk of favourites, I prefer to show it out on the pitch and we must respect all clubs and all aspects of football. In the match against Atlético we could have lost and I can’t give an explanation for that. That’s how the game goes. In any move you make, there is the chance to mess it up. If we put in a great performance and we focussed throughout the match we have a good chance of battling through, but we must keep that idea in mind “.

Varane
“he always puts in a good shift and the key thing is that he continues in that same vein. I just want him to stay here for his entire career”.

Vallejo’s recovery
“We all trained well, Jesus included. He did well, did not have any complaints. We’ll soon see who plays tomorrow. If we have any problems we’ll adapt to the situation”.

“I am not thinking about being without Cristiano Ronaldo, this is what we have and we are happy, there are many people who still remember Di Stéfano and rightly so. I am one of those people. They will also remember Cristiano Ronaldo at this club. We must enjoy this player. ”

Benzema
“He is the same as always, perhaps he’s suffering a little, he wants to do better and score more goals but he is training and is driven, focussing like his teammates.”

The difference between LaLiga and Champions League
“Whenever we start a season we aim to win everything, this year has not been the best, we had trouble scoring, but today we are better in every aspect, there is no explanation for this, my favourite memory is when we won LaLiga and the club’s progress in the Champions is impressive. I don’t think anyone can match that. That’s what this club has, There is no explanation. ”

“When we started scoring again we noticed the difference because we had gone a full month without scoring, now we are in a good dynamic and we have to take advantage of it because we are scoring goals, playing well, not settling and everything feels more regular. We are fourth and we want to try to finish as high up as we can “.

Is Serie A weaker than LaLiga?
“I don’t think it is weak, I think LaLiga is the best league to be in because every game is difficult things can go awry right up to the final game.”

Buffon
“He has won a lot of titles, he is a great guy and he is also a tremendous player. Having said that we want to win tomorrow and eliminate Juventus, and we will see what happens with Buffon, but for what he has done for the game, he is a great player”.

 

FROM REALMADRID.COM

Varane: “Juventus will attack, it will be a huge game”
by Alberto Navarro | Photographer: Helios De La Rubia

“We’re going to play our football, as we always do, and look to win”, explained the defender.

Raphael Varane spoke to the press at Real Madrid City before hosting Juventus, in the return leg of the Champions League quarter-final (Wednesday, 8:45pm CEST): “It is set to be a huge tie against a top side. Anything is possible in football and they are going to be on the attack. We will be up against it, facing a rival who never give up. We’re not looking for a 0-0, we’re going to play our football, as we always do, and look to win”.

“I need to be on form, performing at the top level. I’m a straightforward person. I know how to help my teammates. We need to be competitive and I’ll have to do as Ramos does: shout and be ready for anything. I’ll do that in the best way possible. It’s important for my teammates to be with me and stay competitive”.

Evolution
“I think I’ve changed since coming here. I’ve improved in many aspects and I have a lot more experience. I try to always improve and I think I’ve become a better player over the seasons gone by. I always try to learn from my teammates, from games and from errors, so that I can improve”.

Cristiano
“He really is a lynchpin of the team. He has unique goal scoring qualities. It is normal to notice his absence, but we have other quality players who show it in every game. We have a competitive squad and I have faith in all of them”.

Third Champions League title
“We believe. We have great experience in this competition, but we have to think about tomorrow’s game, which will be a challenge. We’ll see what happens afterwards. We have to go step by step, but we know we have experience and quality, as we’ve shown before. We’ll take it bit by bit”.

“I’ve spoken about my knee injury for a long time. It’s fine now. It has been a hard injury to overcome. Today I know myself much better and I know what I have to do to feel better. I have bad experiences, strange sensations, discomfort, and that makes me know better how to train and be fresh today. I am a 1.90 metres tall and I need to do specific things to feel good. I control the physical aspect better, which is important for my game.”

Higuain
“He is a sensational player. He forces defenders to be focused because he always creates dangerous situations. He is powerful and only thinks about scoring goals, he is a constant danger. I have fond memories of Gonzalo as a guy: he always tried to motivate the dressing room and I always wanted to play. He is a footballing man and a great player. I have good memories of him. ”

Dybala
“He is a key player, we all know that, but he is not playing, so we are expecting other players who will perform at a great level. They have a very long and very complete squad. We know that any substitute will be at the right level. They will play an offensive team that are sure to pressure us and not let us have an easy ride. ”

Casemiro
“If he plays in defence, we know each other really well. In training, he has played alongside me, and I know well how he defends and plays, like the other teammates. It really is vital to know each other and in such a demanding game communication is paramount so we stay on the same wavelength”.

Buffon
“He is a true legend of the game. He is also a great person. I don’t know if this will be his last game, but he is an idol of mine. He seems really geared up for this. Who knows whether he will keep playing but it is an honour people like him, against top rivals”.

Vallejo
“He is doing well. He has no experience in the Champions League yet but he has some quality and I think that, based on what I have seen in training, he will be fine. I do not know if he will feature, but he has the quality and all the faith of the squad behind him if he plays. He is always driven and focused. If he plays I’m sure he will do well. ”

Role in the dressing room
“I am the way I am, I have my own personality. I’m not one of the most talked about, but when the going get tough I try to be set a precedent so that the group can count on me. I try to help out the youngest. I learn from my colleagues. We are used to the maximum demand, but at key moments I try to be reliable so that my teammates count on me.”

 

FROM REALMADRID.COM

Allegri: “Real Madrid are an incredible side”
by Alberto Navarro | Photographer: Victor Carretero

“Cristiano Ronaldo is the most decisive player around at the moment”, commented Buffon.

Massimiliano Allegri and Gianluigi Buffon took to the media room at the Santiago Bernabéu on the eve of the return leg of the Real Madrid v Juventus tie (Wednesday, 8:45pm CEST). The Italian coach had the following to say about the game: “We have to overturn the 3-0 first-leg home defeat, which was harsh on us. We’ll have to put in a good performance against a sensational side at an incredible stadium”.

“We don’t know how the game will pan out. Nobody expected us to concede after two minutes in the first leg. The same thing could easily happen tomorrow night. We’ll have to go out there and show strength and determination and put in a disciplined display in both attack and defence”.

“We had a really good session today and we just have to go out and play without thinking about what’s up for stake. We’ve only got a slim chance to getting through and there’s no point in talking about percentages. We’ll have to put in a big performance and try and get a good result. We’ have to score four to progress. The most important thing is to come away from here having put in a performance that helps us to forget the poor account we gave of ourselves in the first game”.

Behind in the tie
“Real Madrid have great experience and will put in a very disciplined performance. We’ll have to show great focus. I’m still hurting from the first leg because I don’t think that we deserved to lose so heavily. But that’s the way things go in football and we start the game at a real disadvantage”.

Buffon: “We’ll have to show our strength and determination”
“Our target is to perform as we usually do. We’ll have to show strength, balance, determination and play good football as we try and pick up as good a result as we can. We’ll have to perform to the best of our ability. It’s a really great stage and we’re up against great opponents, but we too are a historic club. You’ve got to approach every game with the utmost dignity and do your best”.

“In life I’ve learned not to expect anything. If I’m lucky enough to get clapped by the Bernabéu, then great, but I’m not expecting anything. Whenever I’ve played at the Bernabéu, the fans have always treated us well and have been very sporting”.

Cristiano Ronaldo
“I don’t know whether he’s the best all-round player that I’ve come up against, because I’ve faced some really top players over the years. In view of the position he plays in, he’s likely the most decisive player around at the moment. He always scores and is the difference-maker”.

Final Champions League appearance?
“The important thing is to ensure that it’s not Juventus’s last match in this year’s competition. As for me, it possibly will be but it’s not something that gets me down or creates negative thoughts. If this is the case, I wouldn’t mind for my last Champions League game to have been at the Bernabéu against Real Madrid”.

Navas amongst his top goalkeepers
“Putting my own country to one side, where there are many top goalkeepers, I would have to go for Oblak, Navas, Ter Stegen, Neuer, Courtois… There are a number of goalkeepers who are performing really well. I think that Keylor is proving himself to be a very reliable goalkeeper. On many occasions he has saved Real Madrid with some stunning stops. He has also shown himself to have great mental strength”.

Call Ups

The following players were called up for the match:

Goalkeepers: Navas, Casilla and Luca.
Defenders: Carvajal, Vallejo, Varane, Marcelo and Theo.
Midfielders: Kroos, Modric, Casemiro, M. Llorente, Asensio, Isco and Kovacic.
Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema, Bale and Lucas Vázquez.

Concentración

The team met up in the pouring rain and are now at Real Madrid City where they will remain until it is time to go to the Bernabeu tomorrow. (Video)

We’ve got to get out there and do this tomorrow! HALA MADRID Y NADA MAS!

– Lozil