Zinedine Zidane was overjoyed following Real Madrid’s 5-1 victory against Sporting Gijon. In two matches since he took on the manager job, he has earned two goal fests, but the Frenchman praised his players, and especially Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
“The three of them are fine. I’m very happy with their work, not only when in control of possession, they have worked very well defensively and that’s the most important. Our defensive work has been impressive.”
“This is the beginning of what this season could be. We want to win games, but also titles. I’m happy and satisfied,” he said at the press conference after the match.
Asked about the injuries that Benzema and Bale suffered, the Los Blancos manager explained “Karim has just a blow, luckily, and Gareth’s problem is a bit more difficult, because it’s in the thigh, and that’s a problem. We will wait for the MRI and hope for the best.”
“Physically we have to improve, and we will, it’s only been two weeks of work and we still have time. The better fitness condition we have, the better we will play. We can always improve, but our first half was spectacular,” he told the journalists.
Asked whether he will keep choosing Isco as the starting playmaker instead of James Rodriguez, the Frenchman said “we are all in the same boat, both will play.” “For now, it’s Isco, but maybe in the next game it will be different. It is difficult to choose a line-up because I have very good players who train very well. It is my responsibility to make these decisions and all of them want to play,” he added.
