Lopetegui: Girona vs Barcelona? Every team should play at the same grounds LaLiga Santander - Real Madrid Opposes overseas fixture

Julen Lopetegui has spoken to the press ahead of Real Madrid's match with Athletic Club on Saturday.

He started by answering questions on the international break and rotations.

"The players arrive when they arrive and you have to adapt," he said.

"Athletic have been preparing for the last fortnight and so we must know what to expect in Bilbao. It will be a great game but very difficult and we must keep up the momentum that we had before the break. Athletic will ensure we have to play well to win.

"You have to be 100 percent full of energy for the next match. The match against Athletic is a very important one for us."

The Real coach also made his feelings known on the potential overseas fixture between Barcelona and Girona.

"I'm not in favour of what is happening. It doesn't make the league equal. Every team should play at the same grounds," he admitted.

When asked about who the guaranteed starters would be, Lopetegui praised his squad depth and also responded to questions about certain individuals.

"I have 24 unquestionable starters and we will look for different solutions throughout the season. I have a balanced squad. The alarm clocks can go off any moment and you have to be ready for your turn to play," he said.

"[Gareth] Bale has come back in phenomenal shape with no problems.. The Puskas award? I don't like to get involved in the awards, his best award is being able to celebrate it with his teammates," he said of the Welshman.

"[Karim] Benzema is in peak condition, his maturity, his age... his great start to the season doesn't surprise me because he is a magnificent player and we want him to continue in this form. The players have the credit for their good form.

"[Marco] Asensio plays with a lot of mobility. His shot is one of his great strengths.

"He [Dani Ceballos] has taken advantage of his opportunity, he's in good shape and hard work pays off. Now he has to continue in that vein because Madrid is very demanding."

He made it clear that although he was impressed by his Spanish players' performances for their country, his sole focus is on Real Madrid.

"We have players in many national teams and we try to analyse each one of them away from their respective countries. We only think about Real Madrid.

"They are decisions for the national team coach and we applaud them because they were very good, they are happy and we're happy for them," he continued.

Finally, the Los Blancos boss gave his opinion on Zinedine Zidane's potential return to coaching, Borja Mayoral's recent comments and the club's supposed interest in Hector Herrera.

"Everybody is happy when the best coaches return to coach, but it is a personal decision [for Zidane]," he said of the former Real coach.

"He [Borja Mayoral] was going to stay and then the Mariano opportunity arose and the situation changed. But I haven't heard from him that he felt deceived," he explained.

"It's made up, I didn't meet the player," he said of the Mexican international.