Real Madrid News
RB Leipzig midfielder reveals admiration for Real Madrid veteran ahead of UCL clash
Real Madrid are set to lock horns with RB Leipzig this midweek, in the fifth matchday of the UEFA Champions League.
It is an important game from Leipzig’s point of view, as they are being closely followed by Shakhtar Donetsk in the group standings and must secure at least a point in order to maintain their hopes of qualifying for the next round.
Heading into this encounter, one of Leipzig’s creative lynchpins in Dani Olmo offered his thoughts on Real Madrid.
In an interview with Diario AS, when asked to name the one Real Madrid player he liked the most, the Spanish international responded:
“I love Luka Modric. He’s an immense player. I like everything about him. He’s one of my favorite players. He has a young body with the mind of a veteran. He does everything right on the pitch.”
Formerly of Dinamo Zagreb, Olmo is regarded as one of the most important players for RB Leipzig. Since joining the club in early 2020, he has featured in 100 competitive matches for the east German giants, racking up 18 goals and 21 assists.
Olmo’s progress, though, was marred by an unfortunate injury earlier this campaign. But the Spaniard is fit and ready once again and is looking forward to the upcoming Champions League encounter against Real Madrid.
Olmo’s creative prowess and ability to find balls in the final third could go a long way in boosting Leipzig’s chances of exposing the Real Madrid backline.
It will be particularly interesting to see how the former Barça youth players fares against Modric in the middle of the park this midweek.
Real Madrid News
Rayo Vallecano manager names the one Real Madrid figure he would remove from the team
Rayo Vallecano face a daunting trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to take on a wounded Real Madrid this weekend.
Life after Inigo Perez has not been kind to the Vallecas-based club, who have already had to travel to Camp Nou and now face a trip to the home of their city giants.
Speaking ahead of the game (h/t Madrid Xtra), Rayo Vallecano manager Benat San Jose was asked which Real Madrid player he would like to remove from the team before this weekend’s game.
Surprisingly, his choice was not Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior or Thibaut Courtois.
“Mourinho”
Asked which Madrid player he would take out of the upcoming contest, Benat jokingly chose the man sitting on the opposition bench.
“Which Real Madrid player I’d remove from the match against them? Mourinho,” Benat said with a laugh.
The answer might have been delivered jokingly, but the Rayo coach immediately made clear just how highly he rates the Portuguese manager.
“He’s one of the best managers in history,” he added.
It is significant praise ahead of Saturday’s meeting at the Bernabeu.
Madrid’s squad contains enough individual quality to give any opposition coach several obvious answers, but Benat instead highlighted the influence Mourinho can have over the entire team.
That has become particularly relevant since the Portuguese coach returned to Madrid. His early work has focused on making a talented group function with greater collective discipline.
Courtois and Madrid’s attack also praised
Benat did not stop with the manager.
“They also have one of the best GKs in history and one of the best attackers in history,” he said.
Benat will definitely have seen how Thibaut Courtois played against Inter Milan in midweek and will hope that version does not turn up again this weekend.
Even when teams manage to create opportunities against Madrid, they still have to beat one of the defining goalkeepers of his generation.
At the opposite end, Madrid possess attacking quality capable of turning a match on its head.
The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham can all decide matches single-handedly.
Madrid have a point to prove
Madrid are coming off a disappointing loss to Real Betis in La Liga last weekend and will come into this game with a point to prove.
They will want to ensure that the loss to the Andalusian club was a one-off and that they return to winning ways against Rayo.
Their title rivals, Barça, have been flying high in the league, scoring goals and picking opponents apart for fun.
Madrid need to ensure that they do not hand too much early incentive to Barça, and it remains to be seen how Los Blancos fare against Rayo Vallecano.
