The Frenchman talked about his players, opponents and love for the league title.
As the UEFA Champions League resumes, Spanish giants Real Madrid face French juggernauts Paris Saint-Germain in their opening group stage game of the season on Wednesday night. The record holders would want to forget their miserable previous outing after some fresh arrivals, most of whom would feature in the game against PSG.
The biggest name to join the team has been the 28-year-old former Chelsea and Lille winger Eden Hazard. The Belgian playmaker has struggled to get his feet running for Los Blancos after an injury he suffered in the pre-season.
The Belgian had to wait until the previous game against Levante to make his official debut for Real after he featured for them in the second half as a substitute. But Zidane has confirmed that the Belgian would start against PSG.
“I think he’s ready to play, he’s had more training sessions now,” Zidane explained.
Zinedine Zidane thinks very highly of the Belgian and believes he’s going to be his go to man throughout the season. Real Madrid fans expect them to win trophies after a horrific previous season and Zidane expects Hazard to play a pivotal role in it.
“You know that I’ve always thought that [Hazard can play a pivotal role for Madrid]; he’s decisive, he can make the difference, and the fact that he’s at Real Madrid shows that.
“I don’t want to compare, but I think that he will be a very important player and his future will be formidable at Real Madrid.”
Real Madrid, after an unconvincing pre-season, has suddenly found life after the two outcasts of the team, Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez have delivered for them. Zidane expects his team and their Wedneday game rivals to perform even better as the season progresses.
“We expect a lot from PSG and from Real Madrid, but we’re at the start [of the season] and we can do better,” Zidane analysed.
“We have to improve and do it on all levels, and I think it’s the same for PSG.”
Paris, although have started strong in the recent times, have always somehow fallen short and are yet to play a Champions League semifinal. Zidane believes their opponents have it all to make to the top bracket and are always getting better.
“I don’t know [what PSG are missing], but I think that they’re a team that are always improving; they’re a big club but winning the Champions League is not easy.”
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Finally, the manager was asked what matters most to him this season – winning La Liga or winning the Champions League. The manager has always stressed that league is what he wants to win the most, but also knows that the club expects him to deliver on all fronts in all competitions.
“What I said is that the league is more beautiful because it’s more difficult, but you know that at Madrid everything is important; everything we do, each training session…” the coach explained.