Zinedine Zidane Backs Real Madrid to Thrive in Liverpool 'Chaos' as Real Boss Predicts '50-50' Game
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane has admitted that his side are prepared for the chaos which awaits against Liverpool in the Champions League final, whilst insisting that his side will positively harness the pressure of defending their title.
The Frenchman can guide his side to a third successive European Cup on Saturday and he has backed his star studded team to use the pressure and emotion of the occasion to continue their European dominance, and match the feat accomplished by only three other sides in history.
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“Today and tomorrow will never happen again; we will live other experiences but never this, so we have to make the most of it," Zidane told reporters on Friday, via the Guardian.
“And if there’s a bit of pressure, no problem. It’s life, it’s better like that – a bit of emotion. We’re humans and humans are pure emotion. With pressure it’s even nicer.”
Zidane's opposing manager Jurgen Klopp admitted Madrid were a side capable of living with chaos as he joked about the two coaches being accused of not being tactically astute.
The Frenchman has often been accused of lacking tactical ability in the manager's seat but when asked if he felt valued in the top job, he said: “Yes,” before smiling and adding: “Well, sometimes not but that’s life.”
"We have had chaos before and we will have tomorrow for sure. Football is simple: there are two teams and you have to know how you can damage them and control how much they damage you. We have to try to minimise that [chaos] as much as possible and suffer as little as we can. But we will suffer.”
Despite many installing Madrid as the favourites for the European showpiece, Zindane insisted that it was nothing but "50-50" as he disputed suggestions that his team were overconfident and had already assumed a victory.
He added: “Don’t worry. In the dressing room we don’t think that. People can say what they like but we know that’s not the way it is. We’re not favourites and nor are they.”
