Zidane not taking Legia for granted ahead of Madrid's 400th Champions League match, despite history stacked against Polish champions
Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo trains with teammates during a practice session in Madrid yesterday. Pic/PTI. Inset: Zinedine Zidane
Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo trains with teammates during a practice session in Madrid yesterday. Pic/PTI. Inset: Zinedine Zidane
Madrid: Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane is refusing to treat Legia Warsaw as inferior to his European champions — despite all evidence seemingly pointing to the contrary. Legia are as long as 80/1 with some bookmakers to beat holders Real at the Bernabeu today, with history and statistics stacked heavily against the Polish champions heading into the match.
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Whereas Real have won 27 of their last 31 Champions League matches at home - losing just once - and are record 11-time winners of the competition, Legia have never reached a European final, never won in Spain and were thrashed 6-0 by Borussia Dortmund in their previous away match.
To make matters worse for Legia, they were also beaten at home by Sporting Lisbon — leaving them bottom of Group F without a point or goal. The odds are stacked against Jacek Magiera's men, but Zidane is taking nothing for granted. "Everyone has their own opinions. The two teams are playing in the same competition and if we're playing in the same competition we're at the same level.
"The game is going to be 50-50 and we must start the match very well, make it difficult for them from the off. "We're in the same competition which suggests there's no difference between the two teams, even though many people say there's a big difference. If there's a difference you have to show it on the pitch."
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