Real Madrid News
Thomas Muller aims sly dig at Messi with Ronaldo and Real Madrid remark
‘Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi’ will go down as football’s eternally unanswerable question. The two legends have defined an era of the sport and are amongst the best players to step onto the field in history in their own right.
The Argentine has seemingly taken the edge over his Portuguese counterpart by winning the FIFA World Cup in Qatar last year. However, there is a strong case to argue that Ronaldo at Real Madrid was far more decisive in Europe than Messi ever was.
Bayern Munich eliminated Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe’s PSG from this season’s UEFA Champions League in the Round of 16 last night with a 3-0 win on aggregate.
Speaking to the media after the Bavarians’ big win, Bayern veteran Thomas Muller spoke about his success in getting the better of Messi time and time again and had special words for Real Madrid. As revealed by Georg Holzner, he said,
“When it comes to results, we always do well against Lionel Messi – at all levels. At the club level, it was always Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid who was a problem for us.”
There is a clear element of truth in Muller’s statements for Bayern Munich have recorded some of their most dominant wins in the UCL against Barcelona with Messi. The 8-2 triumph at Lisbon was the cherry on the cake.
Meanwhile, there is another angle to view Muller’s words. While Ronaldo’s influence on Real Madrid’s success was instrumental, the German’s choice of words is interesting. His emphasis that he only struggled against Ronaldo at the club level goes to speak volumes about how Real Madrid as a team have dominated the German champions time and time again.
Real Madrid and Bayern Munich could meet in the future rounds of the UCL this season, especially given that the Merengues’ qualification to the quarterfinal is all but guaranteed.
Real Madrid News
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool monitoring 19-year-old Bundesliga wonderkid – Romano
According to Fabrizio Romano, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Liverpool are all monitoring Bayer Leverkusen and Germany wonderkid Florian Wirtz.
After recovering from his ACL injury, the teenage sensation has been slowly working his way back to his best form. So far this term, Wirtz has managed to rack up a tally of two goals and six assists from 13 matches in all competitions.
The 19-year-old’s talent and potential have never been in question and hence it does not come as a surprise that elite clubs such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Liverpool are all keeping tabs on the German international.
A versatile attacking midfielder, Wirtz is capable of playing anywhere in the final third of the pitch and backs up with top-notch end product. Be it as a false-nine or in a more withdrawn role, the youngster has excelled for Bayer Leverkusen, catching the attention of top teams.
Real Madrid, for their part, are also understood to be among Wirtz’s admirers. Given the situation surrounding Karim Benzema’s fitness and the lack of backup at the top, the youngster could be an option, as he has shown potential while operating through the middle.
But Barcelona also have a strong interest in the teenager with reports even suggesting that they have already made contact with his father to enquire about his situation.
At the same time, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is understood to be a huge admirer of his fellow German and with Roberto Firmino on his way out, Wirtz could be lined up as a possible replacement.
However, Romano adds that the expectation is that Wirtz could stay at Bayer Leverkusen for one more year and depart Germany once the UEFA Euro 2024 is out of the way.
For now, there have been talks or negotiations with any clubs, but Real Madrid, Barcelona and Liverpool are all tracking Wirtz and his progress in Germany.
