‘Only winning in Madrid’s hands’

By livio - 19 August 2018, 9:20

Julen Lopetegui will not reveal his No 1 against Getafe but insists only ‘winning matches is in Real Madrid’s hands, not signings’.

A lack of new faces and defeat to Atletico Madrid in the European Super Cup has already put Lopetegui under the spotlight ahead of his debut in La Liga on Sunday, but the former Spain boss made it clear he had ‘total confidence’ in his squad to go for the Treble.

“The Madrid I want to see is the team we believe in, one who are ambitious, united and confident, respecting our opponents but playing in the way we believe,” he said at a Press conference.

“Comparing Spain and Madrid is like comparing a tomato and a biscuit, they’re different. They’re both magnificent but also different. We have enough talent to be a great team and we will be one.

“What I’d like is to focus on taking advantage of a squad that I love. We have a lot of talent and I want them all to be at the service of a collective.

“This is what we’re going to try to do, and we’re confident that there will be a Madrid team with a team mentality.

“The important ones are the ones that are here. the ones that are not aren’t important. It’s not a priority for us right now. Signings aren’t in our hands, winning matches is.

“We’ll fight on all fronts with the players we have. We have total confidence in them. They’re working fully and they have more ability and talent than people think.

“Penalty taker? We have several options, but I hope it’s the biggest problem we have this season.

“It’ll depend on the moments of each match and continuity that a player has had. We’re preparing to face a team who finished eighth last season.

“They’ve strengthened very well, with the same Coach and playing idea. That awaits us on Sauturday and we must be able to overcome a team with more individual quality than they had last season.

“I believe in the weekly management of my players. There’s no magic formula. We have great solutions and we’ll try to manage the squad well.

“There’s great competition, but it’s something positive, not negative. It’s clear that we’re not going to have five goalkeepers like we do now.”