Real Madrid boss Rafa Benitez says his team will go to Eibar in positive mood despite the negative headlines in recent weeks.
Los Blancos have lost their last two games in La Liga – against Sevilla and Barcelona – and only just scraped past Shakhtar Donesk in the Champions League after almost blowing a four-goal lead.
Much has been written about the humbling at the hands of their bitter rivals last weekend, but at his press match conference ahead of the trip to the Basque Country, Benitez said the season still has a long way to go and there is plenty of time to put things right. He also reminded reporters that the team went 14 games unbeaten earlier on this season and scored four goals in their last game.
“Eibar are doing very well, they’re on a good run. It’s always difficult to go and play there. But the game against Shakhtar proved that when we’re committed, dominate the ball, the players are clicking, that we can score four goals away from home,” he commented.
And he added: “So this is the message I want to put across. We went 14 games unbeaten, we can go to Eibar and show the fans we have a team who will continue fighting. There are a lot of games to play and the fans should be positive.”
With rumours of a falling out between him and James Rodriguez after the Colombian was dropped following the defeat to Los Cules, Benitez denied the claims and wanted to putthe record straight.
“I’m delighted to have a player of James’ quality in the team. My hope is that he plays to the highest level he can, that he scores lots of goals and that we win lots of titles because of him. There’s no problem. There’s a big squad and lots of competition but it’s a great privilege to have a player of his kind of quality,” he said.
