Real Madrid News
Lionel Messi says loss against Real Madrid last season was hard: “We played great”
Real Madrid’s run en route lifting the Champions League was historic; arguably the most difficult one of all time. Not only because of the teams they faced – and beat -, but also because of the manner in which they did.
Their run in the knockouts included comeback wins against Paris Saint-Germain in the Round of 16, Chelsea in the quarter-finals, and then Manchester City in the semi-finals.
PSG were head and shoulders better than Madrid in the first leg of the encounter. Thibaut Courtois was flawless for 93 minutes, but could not deny Kylian Mbappe’s 94th-minute winner.
In the second leg, too, Mbappe’s brilliance had a chokehold on Madrid for 60 minutes. It was not enough, though, as Karim Benzema’s second-half hattrick took the game away from their grasp.
Gianluigi Donnarumma got the lion’s share of the blame, but it is also difficult to look past Lionel Messi’s first leg penalty miss. A goal there, in the second half, no less, would have taken the game away from the Spanish side.
Messi opened up about the game, speaking to Barcelona legend Hristo Stoitchkov, as relayed by AS Argentina.
“It was very hard, because of how it happened. We played two great games, but lost because of small details”, he said.
PSG were undoubtedly one of the leading candidates to lift the trophy last season, alongside Manchester City and Liverpool – all three of whom lost to Real Madrid along the way.
Messi says their prime objective this season, much like last, is to conquer Europe, but that it is tricky because the best team does not always win it:
“The main objective for PSG, as every year, is to win the UCL. It is a very difficult competition, because the best team does not always win it. It is always decided by minor details, any mistake can knock you out.”
According to TeamTalk, Real Madrid have joined the growing list of clubs monitoring Gabriel Rajkovic, a 15-year-old winger whose rapid development at Valerenga has already attracted attention from several of Europe’s leading sides.
The Merengues are known for keeping an eye on exciting young talent across the globe and it seems that Rajkovic’s exploits in Norway, with the first team, have alerted them.
Real Madrid keeping tabs on Rajkovic
As per the report, Real Madrid are among a host of clubs closely following the progress of the young forward.
Rajkovic holds both Norwegian and Serbian nationality and has emerged as one of the most promising young players in Norway.
His development has not gone unnoticed, with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund also understood to be monitoring him.
However, at this point, it is Arsenal and Chelsea, who are understood to be leading the charge for Rajkovic, having compiled a detailed dossier on the teenage prodigy after extensive scouting.
On top of that, the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have all watched Rajkovic in recent weeks.
Real Madrid could therefore face significant competition if they decide to step up their interest in a player who has already made an impression at senior level.
Making an impact at just 15
Rajkovic was handed a promotion to the Valerenga first-team squad in January earlier this year, when he was only 14 years old.
Following that, he signed a new contract with the club in March, when he turned 15, committing to the club until 2028.
Despite being only 15, the winger has already begun gaining experience in first-team football. In all, he has made 14 senior appearances for the Norwegian outfit, scoring three and assisting one goal.
Rajkovic has also represented Norway Under-16s, making two appearances and scoring once despite being younger than many of his teammates.
Those numbers become more impressive when his age and stage of development are taken into account.
Real Madrid have built a reputation for identifying young talent well before players reach their peak, and Rajkovic has now emerged as another name on their scouting radar.
But given the number of clubs in the race, signing the teenage wonderkid will not be easy.
