Di Matteo: Schalke can upset Real at the Bernabeu
FC Schalke 04 relish making UEFA Champions League history by overturning a 2-0 deficit at Real Madrid CF tomorrow, though they reckon it will be a tough task.
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The Royal Blues lost the first-leg 2-0 at home when Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo netted for Real to give the Germans an uphill battle in Madrid for a place in the quarter-finals.
However, coach Roberto Di Matteo knows about upsetting the odds in this competition and says his charges have nothing to lose, heading for the Bernabeu with the dream of earning a good win.
Di Matteo, of course, led Chelsea FC to a somewhat surprise triumph in 2012 when the final, like this year's, was in Germany. While a raucous atmosphere in Gelsenkirchen could not inspire Schalke to a first-leg win against the holders, the scoreline was a vast improvement on their 6-1 loss 12 months ago, and Di Matteo discussed the current round of 16 and his own management philosophy with UEFA.com.
According to Di Matteo, he has adequately prepared his team for a possible upset Real Madrid at the Bernabeu, as anything could happen in football.
"To be able to compete against a team like that, our team need to have a perfect day and hope that Real Madrid are not in top form. Then we could get a positive result. We have a good side. The players are all very willing and ready to develop further and improve day in, day out. That is very important, that they push themselves to their limits. We hope we can achieve a positive result.
Real have had their own challenges in the past few weeks, losing 0-1 t away to Athletic in last Saturday’s La Liga encounter.
The return of Luka Modric will be warmly welcomed by all at Real Madrid following another disjointed display in their 1-0 defeat away to Athletic Bilbao last Saturday.
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The Croatian midfielder has been out of action since mid-November with a thigh injury he picked up on international duty. While Madrid at first continued apace, the defeat to Valencia in January and dropped points in three of their last five league matches suggest his skill set is required to get their title bid back on track.