Real Madrid News
Braga forward not afraid to face Real Madrid: “They don’t scare me at all”
Speaking at a press conference, SC Braga forward Alvaro Djalo has claimed that he and his teammates are not scared to face Real Madrid later tonight in the UEFA Champions League.
The two teams are set to take on each other tonight in the Champions League Group C encounter at the Braga Municipal Stadium.
Given the statures of the two teams, Real Madrid go into the game as obvious favourites, but Braga forward Djalo has claimed that he is not scared of facing Europe’s most successful team, as he said (h/t Mundo Deportivo):
“Honestly, Real Madrid doesn’t scare me at all. We respect Real Madrid a lot, but we are not afraid.”
“We are going to play one-on-one, as we have done in previous matches, and we will try to do our best to get the points. We are calm and we are going to enjoy the match,” he further added.
Echoing his teammate Abel Ruiz’s sentiments about Braga’s ambitions, Djalo said: “We will face Real Madrid with the ambition and determination to win the three points.”
Djalo, 24, was born in Madrid and grew up in Bilbao. So, he will be coming up against his hometown club tonight and stated that it is nice to face the Merengues.
“It’s always good to be able to play against my hometown club,” he said.
The Spaniard also revealed how he started supporting Real Madrid’s arch-rivals Barcelona just to “annoy” his Madridista father.
So, there will be no shortage of motivation for the forward when he steps onto the pitch to face Carlo Ancelotti’s men tonight.
Real Madrid News
Mourinho reacts to Vinicius suspension: “Why announce it two hours before an important match?”
Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has questioned the RFEF Disciplinary Committee’s decision to announce Vinicius Jr.’s four-match suspension just hours before their UEFA Champions League meeting with AS Roma on Wednesday.
The Brazilian has been hit with a four-match ban for his red card against Villarreal, meaning he will miss the matches against Sevilla, Barcelona, Racing Santander, and Valencia.
And, speaking to Movistar+ (h/t MARCA) before the match, the Real Madrid manager was asked whether the punishment could affect the Brazilian psychologically.
Mourinho instead turned his attention to the football authorities and the timing of their announcement.
“I think that is a question for the Committee. Why have they announced the suspension at this particular moment? If you are asking me this question, it is presumably because you think it could affect him,” the Portuguese coach replied.
“You should ask the Committee why they did not announce it this morning, or tomorrow morning. Why do they do it two hours before a match that is important for Real Madrid, which is a Spanish club?” he added, questioning the timing of the decision.
Mourinho explains his tactical approach against Roma
The Real Madrid manager also outlined his plan for facing a Roma side known for their aggressive pressing.
“My intention is to stop them from pressing us so high up the pitch, given the players we have available and as a precaution,” he said.
Continuing, the Portuguese manager added: “They press man-to-man higher up the pitch better than anyone else, and we will see whether we can take advantage of that. If not, they will have to drop their press five or ten metres.”
Why Rudiger over Huijsen
Mourinho also justified his decision to start Antonio Rudiger at centre-back alongside Ibrahima Konate rather than Dean Huijsen.
“They played very well together in the last match, Rudiger and Konate, showing great leadership and the ability to withstand a difficult situation when we had ten men for 30 minutes,” he said.
“I am not saying Dean is not capable of playing a match like this, but this is a wonderful atmosphere for Roma and a difficult one for us. I think a player with Antonio’s experience can be important,” Mourinho added.
Finally, Mourinho was asked about his emotions ahead of returning to face Roma, the club he managed between 2021 and 2024.
The Portuguese coach offered a brief response, saying that he had his feelings about the occasion “blocked”.
