Champions League (article)
Mourinho backs Madrid to beat Moscow freeze
José Mourinho is backing his Real Madrid CF team to overcome the
inhospitality that awaits them at PFC CSKA Moskva on Tuesday, namely
temperatures of -10C and a formidable back line. He needs no
introduction to the latter, having won all four of his previous
encounters with the Russian club in the UEFA Champions League with FC
Internazionale Milano and Chelsea FC. CSKA will, says coach Leonid
Slutski, have to be at their best to prevent number five in this round
of 16 first leg – especially as they have not played a competitive game
since 7 December.
CSKA
Coach Leonid Slutski
The most
important thing for a coach is to prepare his team tactically, although
morale and mental preparations are also important. We have a specific
game plan. When we are up against a team we are superior to, we can
guarantee the result by implementing the plan. But "in games like this
we need favourable circumstances, we need Real to be under par and then
to capitalise [on this]". Every team makes errors; we must be ready for
them.
In theory Real should be in a better place because they
are in the middle of their season, playing regularly and getting good
results. But it was the same last week for Zenit, when they played a
team [SL Benfica] whose championship is in full swing and they showed
that you can prepare well without competitive matches. If anything,
Zenit looked better prepared.
Real are strong. They are
dangerous on the counterattack, even in the second phase. They can
attack through the middle or with strong play on the flanks. You can
close the space and prevent them from breaking with pace but that in
itself is not necessarily enough; you need a comprehensive approach. I
will be satisfied with any score that allows us to go through to the
next round. Even our new players are ready – their knees aren't
trembling.
Weekend result
CSKA have not played a
competitive match since their 2-1 victory at FC Internazionale Milano on
7 December because the Russian Premier-Liga does not resume until 3
March after the winter break. They have played a host of friendlies,
most recently last Thursday when goals from Zoran Tošić and winter
signing Ahmed Musa earned a 2-2 draw with FC Shakhtar Donetsk.
Team news
Tomáš Necid has recovered from torn knee ligaments suffered on 10 June
and Keisuke Honda has returned to training after a knee injury although
the first leg comes too soon for him. Igor Akinfeev (torn knee
ligaments, out since 28 August) and Mark González (hip, 30 April) remain
sidelined, as is Aleksandrs Cauņa after breaking his toe last month.
Real Madrid
Coach José Mourinho
Before I start answering questions I would like to congratulate our
basketball team that beat Barcelona in the final. Tomorrow we have to be
stronger than the conditions, with the artificial pitch and also
temperatures of -10C, which is something new for all of us. We have not
been able to prepare for the conditions that await so we have to adopt
the right mental approach: we must be stronger. Our goal is a positive
result, a win or a score draw.
I have faced CSKA with Inter and
also Chelsea in 2004. Many CSKA players have been playing for the club
for ages and know each other very well, supplemented by newcomers like
[Seydou] Doumbia and Musa. It is not for nothing that CSKA play in the
Champions League play-offs every year. That shows the strength of the
club. One of their strong points is defence; I remember with Inter how
hard it was to score.
"The foundations that CSKA have have not
changed for years. And all the teams that work with solid foundations
improve as CSKA have done". They are very good in defence, and both
physically and tactically the players are well prepared.
http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/season=2012/matches/round=2000264/match=2007672/prematch/preview/index.html#mourinho+backs+madrid+beat+moscow+freeze
www.uefa.com
Temperatures
of -10C await them but coach José Mourinho is backing Real Madrid CF to
overcome the conditions and a PFC CSKA Moskva side whose defensive
qualities he noted.
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