JAKARTA - Hours before the Champions League last 8 first leg match between Real Madrid and Liverpool, Zinedine Zidane spoke to the press.
The France coach was asked if he felt Los Blancos were underestimated ahead of the clash, and he agreed.
"Well, I think so," replied Zidane.
“In the end, we deserve the trust. What we can focus on are the efforts and results we've had recently.
"This team never gave up on anything."
Speaking of Jurgen Klopp, Zidane has nothing but kind words for the Reds coach.
"He's a great coach," said Zidane. He trained for a long time and he has experience.
"He's done a really good job throughout his career, and everyone is doing their job in their own way. I saw a lot of different coaches and I saw a lot of different things during my coaching courses."
Meanwhile, Karim Benzema is Real Madrid's only mainstay in attack, and Zidane is pleased with the No. 9 it has a good understanding with all its peers.
"Everyone here knows how to play and earn their place at this club," said Zidane. "They are all the best players.
"They all understand Kareem, and Kareem understands all of them. There is a lot of chemistry between them."
Eden Hazard could return to action against the Premier League champions, but Zidane has called on the Belgian to be careful.
🎙️💬 Zidane: "Our focus is solely on Tuesday's game, we are not looking ahead any further." #UCL pic.twitter.com/IovZCcd7h0
- Real Madrid CF 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) April 5, 2021
Eden needs to be calm, Zidane explained. "We never risk a player coming back if he's not ready.
"We will do a lot of things little by little and we will see when he will play again. That's how he is at the moment."
In the opposing camp, Liverpool's defense has weakened due to injuries this season. However, Zidane was reluctant to underestimate his opponent.
"I don't know if it's a weakness because they have other players," said Zidane. "We are also absent, but the strength is in the team.
"There are always players absent, but the strength is also in this team. That's what it is for us."
Real Madrid versus Liverpool takes place on Wednesday, April 7 at 02.00 WIB.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
