MADRID, 21 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The director of Institutional Relations of Real Madrid, Emilio Butragueño, said Friday that the club has “full confidence” in the Madrid players, “in their competitive character, their experience and also in everything that this competition means” for the Merengue entity , facing the round of 16 against Atlético de Madrid of the Champions League.
“We know each other very well, we know about the difficulty we are going to have in the tie, but at the same time everyone knows the illusion with which we live this competition,” said the former soccer player in statements published by Real Madrid on his website .
For Real Madrid, the five previous duels against Atlético in Europe “belong to the past.” “It will be another different tie, with other players, it will be something different. Those qualifiers and two finals were very even and I think that is what will happen now now,” he predicted.
“They have a great team and we have to play very well with a very high performance to qualify. But I insist, we have full confidence in our players, in their competitive character, their experience and also in everything that this competition means to us” , he added.
Butragueño also highlighted “the fact of playing in Madrid the two games” of those eighths, regarding having had to play against the Bayer Leverkusen. “That second game to be held in Germany would cause Madrid to arrive at 5 in the morning with the also negative appearance of the preparation of the next League match,” he warned. “The draw has been as it has been and you have to prepare these two games well in the hope of being in the quarterfinals, which is our goal,” he said.
“Two very equal and difficult games await us. In the first game at the Bernabéu we trust our audience and achieve a result that allows us Category of the rival, but we fully trust our players and their ability to overcome all difficulties, “he analyzed.
White arrives at this crossing after eliminating Manchester City in the ‘playoff’, with an “extraordinary” performance. “In both games before the City we were better. In the first leg in Mercuneter, the team had to get a better result even though we won 2-3. And on Wednesday, honestly, in all aspects we were superior. The team offered An exhibition and the result also had to be broader, “he said.
“In that sense, it is a mood impulse for all. We must continue in that line of intensity, concentration, defensive solidarity. It should be noted that the City’s first shot was in the 65th minute, which says a lot about that defensive system And how the team was able to block some players as talented as the City has in attack, “he praised.
Thus, Butragueño sees this tie against City as a point from which to grow, because the most immediate calendar will be “very demanding.” “We have a very difficult calendar and we will need all the players. What happened in this tie has to help us in all aspects for the following games,” he concluded.