Real Madrid

Director General Jorge Valdano shared his views on Real Madrid's victory over Mallorca with the media.

"The goal was essential to Benzema. A striker needs confidence, and it comes with strikes. He gave a good performane and scored a goal that allowed us to take three points. In the past, it was players like Higuain who had to resolve similar situations as they were heavily scrutinised; and Higuain has turned out to be a great striker for Real Madrid. We hope the same happens to Benzema."

"It wasn't one of our most inspired performances, but the season always has three or four games of this sort and they have to be resolved with maturity."

"We are behind Barcelona and we cannot afford to make any mistakes. This is apparent sometimes as a game unfolds. Our style is to fight to the end and we will keep this up. Our players don't give up easily."

"Our match against Sevilla will be very demanding. It's good for us to get used to playing knockout stages because we will eventually play them in the Champions League as well. It's good exercise for us. Copa del Rey matches are very demanding and they burden the team with exhaustion. It is very exciting to reach the final and to win the championship, but energy is drained out of your system along the way."