Girona manager highlights Real Madrid’s strength ahead of La Liga battle | OneFootball

The past few weeks have been mixed for Real Madrid across different competitions and concerningly so.

While the men in white picked up important and convincing wins over Leganes in the Copa del Rey and Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League, they have dropped points in their last three league games.

Having secured just two of a possible nine points in their last three La Liga outings, they will be on a mission to turn their situation around on Sunday as they take on Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Michel’s pre-match words

Girona coach Michel faced the press ahead of his team’s clash against Real Madrid in La Liga and showcased his winning mentality as he made it clear that his team would only look for the win.

“I don’t agree to a draw, because I always prepare the games to win them. I am aware of the difficulty and I know that Real Madrid are the favourites, but in football, things always happen,” he noted.

Elaborating on the complications of facing Los Blancos, especially given their form in recent weeks and how they sent Manchester City packing from the UEFA Champions League, Michel said:

“It’s a very complicated game because they are in a great moment.”

“Our idea is to be protagonists, but there will be times when we will have to have a lot of concentration in defence because two or three passes in attack and they are unstoppable,” he added on Real Madrid’s ruthless attack.

Michel’s Girona face Real Madrid this weekend. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Michel then went on to highlight the importance of improving his team’s defensive shape and effort if they are to get a result against Los Blancos, saying:

“We can’t lose a lot of people looking forward. We have to look at the pressure from behind because if not, we won’t catch any player.”

He also named the particular Real Madrid stars his team needed to be wary of, saying:

“Vinicius, Rodrygo, Mbappe or Valverde, who seems to be the best full-back in the world, are players who are very hard to beat.”

Jude Bellingham will be unavailable after picking up a suspension, but Michel was confident it would not matter much in the bigger scheme of things.

“He is among the best players in the world, but any player who replaces him will show a very high level.”

Finally, the Catalan team’s coach was asked about the recent developments in La Liga over the refereeing situation and whether he saw Real Madrid’s stance as wrong. Michel, however, preferred to focus on the game.

“My concern is Mbappe, Rodrygo, Vinicius. My concern is Real Madrid. We must remove the focus off refereeing because there is always controversy, for or against, but refereeing is very complicated and they try to do it their best,” he concluded.

Source: Mundo Deportivo