Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane has warned his team not to underestimate the attacking strength of city rivals Atletico Madrid ahead of the Champions League final.
“People only ever say that they defend very well and hardly concede any goals, but when they go forward they can cause their opponent problems,” the Frenchman said at Real’s media day in Madrid on yesterday.
Zidane had an injury scare yesterday as striker Cristiano Ronaldo was treated on the training ground but he is not thought at risk of missing Saturday’s Champions League final against Atletico Madrid.
The Portugal international suffered a knock on his right thigh in a collision with reserve keeper Kiko Casilla.
After treatment on the ground, he walked off unaided.
Ronaldo has returned from a pulled right hamstring suffered in April but has still felt some pain in the muscle, according to Spanish media reports.
Coach Zinedine Zidane said yesterday before the training knock that Ronaldo was fully fit.
“There’s not going to be any problems that Cristiano Ronaldo goes in to the final at 100 per cent,” he said.
“On Saturday he didn’t play a game we played between ourselves as precaution. We’ll see how he is today, but he’ll be ready for Saturday.”
Central defender Raphael Varane, however, is definitely out of the final with a thigh injury.
“Zizou” wouldn’t tell the hundred or so journalists from all over the world how he’d set his team up on Saturday in Milan.”To be patient and play on the counter, like Atlético coach Diego Simeone has predicted?” he was asked.”Wait till Saturday, then you’ll see whether or not we’ll play on the counter.”
The 43-year-old did say that he thinks possession alone “won’t be enough” in the repeat of the 2014 Lisbon final (which Real won 4-1 after extra-time). Zidane, who only succeeded Rafa Benitez as Real coach at the beginning of the year, came across modestly despite having reached the final of Europe’s premier football tournament.
He described Simeone as “one of the best coaches in the world” and conceded: “I still have to learn a lot, and I’m looking forward to that. I’ve still got a long way to go to become an important coach.”
That said, the final’s not keeping him up at night: “But I’m still happy and excited.”