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Antonio Rüdiger Saying Dealing with “Super Striker” Erling Haaland Real Madrid is in the Champions League quarterfinals with Manchester City As a defender it is “personal”, as Madrid seeks revenge after City eliminated them from the competition last season.
Rüdiger dealt well with Haaland in last year’s semifinal first leg — which finished 1-1 at the Bernabéu, with Haaland failing to score — but didn’t start the return leg in Manchester, which ended in a comfortable 4-0 win for City.
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“It was a good game last year at the Bernabéu,” Rüdiger said in a pre-match news conference ahead of Tuesday’s match. We all kept Haaland silent that night. “My teammates and I did an outstanding job in keeping the Haaland area quiet. [Kevin] De Bruyne quiet.
This time the goal will be to contain dangerous players such as Phil Foden, De Bruyne and Haaland… “It’s personal to me, as a defender. I play against an offensive player like Haaland.”
Madrid and City are meeting this month in the Champions League, the fifth time they have met in the last decade. Before last year’s match, the LaLiga giants won the semifinals in 2016, City advanced to the round of 16, and Madrid defeated City in extra-time in the semifinals in 2022.
“We won’t only sit back and watch City have possession,” Rüdiger said. But that’s just part of football. We’re prepared to play more defensively in certain phases.
Rüdiger praised the impact in the Madrid dressing room of Jude BellinghamThe player has four goals for the Champions League in just six matches this season.
“At the beginning I was a bit surprised, I didn’t know much about him,” Rüdiger said. But wow, there’s an already big personality in our locker-room. It’s impressive how he manages himself. Although he is 20, he looks much older.
“I am sure that he is going to be an excellent leader in the future.” [England]. “He’s just a professional. He’s an excellent lad. We just hope he stays healthy.”
Carlo Ancelotti, Madrid’s coach, admitted that his team lacked the “courage” and “personality” it needed to win last year’s 2nd leg match against City.
The tie is “This” [will be decided by] Ancelotti added, “The best players are the ones who win.” The players decide the games. It is important to have a strategy that will convince the players. In these games, there are many things to consider: the quality of each player, their defense and counterattacks. This is not just one aspect, but all the aspects of it.
Ancelotti claimed he would not surprise anyone with his selection of team after selecting midfielder Eduardo Camavinga Last year, the City team had a left-back playing against them.
“[This season] Ancelotti explained, “We are different with our ball. Ancelotti said: “We had a different ball last year.” Karim BenzemaThis season, we do not have any reference points at the centre forward position. This has been dealt with by having more flexibility up front. We have done a good job. This could be the key to winning.”
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