阿斯皮利奎塔：皇馬很難對付、希望我們有球迷到場 - 切爾西足球俱樂部 Chelsea Football Club

https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/2022/03/23/
azpilicueta--real-madrid-will-demand-everything-from-us

Azpilicueta: Real Madrid will demand everything from us

23 Mar 2022


Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta believes the Blues will need to show why
we are the reigning champions of Europe if we are to beat Real Madrid and
continue our current Champions League campaign.


https://i.imgur.com/jF2mHiD.jpg


Having defeated Lille 4-1 on aggregate as our defence of the Champions
League trophy entered the knock-out stages, Chelsea have now been draw
against Real Madrid in this season's quarter-finals, with the defender
being asked about the tie as he spoke to the media while on international
duty with Spain.


We also faced the Spanish side in our triumphant 2020/21 campaign,
defeating them 3-1 over two legs in the last four, but Azpilicueta
dismissed suggestions we could go into these matches as the favourites.
Instead, he pointed to Real Madrid's dramatic comeback to beat Paris
Saint-Germain, despite trailing by two goals with 30 minutes remaining, as
proof of the challenge we are up against.


'The favourites have to be shown on the pitch,' he said. 'We were not the
favourites when we played them in last season's Champions League and we
managed to win it.


https://i.imgur.com/yBsN6mM.jpg
Celebrating during our 2-0 second-leg win over Real Madrid at Stamford
Bridge in the 2020/21 semi-finals


'We know it will be a difficult tie facing a club like Real Madrid, they
are the team that has won the Champions League the most times. They are
coming off a great tie against PSG, where they showed their strength.


'It's going to be hard to beat them but we're the champions and we have to
show it because it's a tie and an opponent that will demand everything
from us.'


Azpilicueta also highlighted a big potential difference between last
season's tie and our meetings in 2022. The two previous matches were both
played behind closed doors due to the Covid-19 pandemic, while the away
game took place in Real Madrid's reserve-team stadium at their training
complex on the outskirts of the city, rather than their usual home at the
Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.


There is still a question mark over the ability of fans to attend due to
the current Government sanctions, but our captain is hoping a solution can
be found so that crowds can be present this time around at both the Bridge
and the Bernabeu.


'Last year we were fortunate enough to beat Real Madrid and qualify for
the final, but we know this will be a complicated tie with different
circumstances. We still don't know if we will play behind closed doors
because of the sanctions or not, although of course we hope we can play
with a crowd.


https://i.imgur.com/RGELitZ.jpg
In action at Real Madrid's Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano last season


'So these are different circumstances. Then there were no supporters, now
we hope to have them at Stamford Bridge for the first game. It also
changes in Madrid because last year we played at the sports city at
Valdebebas, now we are going to do it at the Bernabeu.


'After two years without supporters because of the pandemic, we know how
difficult it is to play a game like this in an empty stadium. We want to
keep the fans close.'


As Azpilicueta was speaking to the media on international duty, where he
is joined by Blues team-mate Marcos Alonso in the Spain squad for
back-to-back home friendlies against Albania and Iceland, he also
discussed the prospect of a first winter World Cup in 2022 and the
advantage his country have in being able to look ahead to that tournament
already after securing their qualification in November.


'A winter World Cup at the end of the year is going to be something new
and unfamiliar, but we have to adapt. There will only be one week of
training camp before the first game, which is why these international
weeks when the group get together are becoming more and more important.


'Other teams are playing for qualification, we qualified already in
Seville against Sweden. We have to continue improving in each training
session and we have a magnificent opportunity ahead of us to keep building
when we play two friendlies with the national team at home in front of our
fans.


https://i.imgur.com/ebHdlqv.jpg
Azpilicueta and Spain booked their place at the World Cup with a 1-0 win
over Sweden in November


'There is great competition to be part of this group. The group here is
working very well and we all want to be part of the national team for the
World Cup. We want to show what we can do and continue to grow as a team.'

--


Burrell: "If the Gods are fucking you, you find a way to fuck them back.
It's Baltimore, gentlemen. The Gods will not save you."

- The Wire: Season 3, Episode 3

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