EDF: ‘Madrid still strong’

By Football Italia staff

Roma Coach Eusebio Di Francesco warns Real Madrid “remain strong” without Cristiano Ronaldo and even “have more quality with the ball”.

The Giallorossi get their Champions League campaign underway at the Bernabeu tomorrow night having reached the semi-finals last season, and the tactician gave an interview to AS about his team’s prospects.

“It was a great ride [last season],” Di Francesco said.

“We got to where we got on merit, we hope we can repeat it.

“The Barcelona comeback? The fans remind me of it every time I meet them on the street, and I use it to motivate my players by reminding them that anything can happen in 90 minutes.

“As for the Liverpool semi-final, there’s always some regret there, some of the refereeing decisions didn’t help us but what really punished us was that half hour in the first leg, and that was our fault.

“Now we have another year to work together, I expected a better start in Serie A but we need to find consistency in our performances.

“Real Madrid remain strong even without Cristiano Ronaldo, that’s what the numbers in the first matches tell us.

“They have more quality with the ball, they make fewer mistakes and they have more leaders.

“[Zinedine] Zidane did something extraordinary, [Julen] Lopetegui wants to give more organisation, with the players closer together and more aggressiveness

“The Real Madrid player who would be perfect for Roma is Marco Asensio, he’ll definitely win the Ballon d’Or one day.

“I’d love to have him because of his age and the quality he’s showing, for his ability to adapt to different roles and his talent. And I’d liked to have had Sergio Ramos!”

The Roma fans have been critical of the summer transfer campaign, and Di Francesco was also asked for his thoughts on that.

“We knew we could lose Alisson, there were offers the club couldn’t turn down and the player himself wanted to leave. [Kevin] Strootman also wanted a new experience, it was his decision.

“For [Radja] Nainggolan the reasoning was different, but I want to look ahead. [Justin] Kluivert can improve a lot, he’ll become a very important player for us.

“Right now he’s more instinctive than rational, and that’s what he needs to improve.

“[Sporting director] Monchi works alongside me, not above me, he has an impressive knowledge of international football and he’s adapting to Italian football.

“Here he’s looking for more physical strength and tactical awareness, where in Spain it’s more about technique.”

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