“We don’t underestimate Chelsea, they have a great squad”
MADRID, 11 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Madrid’s Austrian defender David Alaba assured that they are not underestimating Chelsea, the whites’ rival in the Champions League quarterfinals whose first leg is played this Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabéu, and added that they will try to leave the game “impressed” white feud and the connection between the team and the fans.
“We do not underestimate Chelsea. They have a great squad, they are a great team and we have to be focused, from the first minute, and push to try to succeed,” he commented at a press conference.
Despite the fact that the ‘blues’ are coming from losing at home to Wolves (1-0), at Frank Lampard’s debut as new coach -the third this season-, and they are eleventh in the Premier League, Alabama he assured that they have “good players” and that they are a “strong team”.
“The changes (Lampard) they have made can affect us in some way and we know it. Most of the time Real Madrid is favourite, but we don’t think about that. We are focused on ourselves, we have trained well, the goal is to reach semifinals and to win tomorrow. It is necessary to do it well tomorrow”, recognized.
In addition, he denied that those from London could have stage fright at the Santiago Bernabéu. “I don’t think Chelsea are going to be afraid but we’ll do everything possible to make them impressed. In the ‘Champions’ it’s not easy to beat us at home with our fans on our side,” he added.
Regarding the favoritism of Real Madrid, which defends the title, he assured that it is a pressure that they “love”. “Real Madrid is the best club in the world and we have to manage that pressure. We work very hard every day, we have a lot of confidence and we want the fans to be proud of us,” he appealed.
Asked if he would like Carlo Ancelotti to continue as coach, he reacted with a clear “of course.” “He is a great coach and he has shown it many times. He has a lot of experience, he knows how to succeed and that is what has been seen in the past. We are very happy to have him, and we would love him to continue next year,” he said.
Regarding Fede Valverde and the complaint by Alex Baena for alleged aggression after Madrid-Villarreal, he assured that his partner is “very well”. “He has our full support. He is trained very well, he is fit and very focused on tomorrow’s game. I can’t comment more,” he said.
And, about whether they have ‘thrown LaLiga’, with 13 points lost compared to the leader FC Barcelona, he acknowledged that his annual objective included winning the domestic title. “The objective of each year is to win the League, this year we have lost points but we have to keep advancing, focused, game by game because we fight until the end and try to win every game,” he acknowledged.
The central defender also commented on the good duo made by Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jr. “They are a great couple, you can see them watching them train and play. It’s not a surprise how well they play together on the field because I see them every day. And in the Karim is a leader, he always tries to help the team and the youngsters, like Vini”, he explained.
Regarding the fact that he did not vote, as captain of Austria, for Karim Benzema in the ‘The Best’ awards, he went back to explain what happened. “I am not the one who chooses Leo Messi before Karim Benzema. We are a team, everyone can vote for our team, and in the end there is a result and that was it”, he reiterated.