NEWS | 15/04/2014 | Diego Jabalquinto
“The team is ready, it is looking solid and consistent and there is always more confidence in our chances coming of the back of good results”, stated the captain.“The job that the side has to do is what we've been doing all season. Eight months ago we wanted to be in the fight for every title and we are on the right lines. We are in a final, a Champions League semi-final and in the league we will fight until the end to win it. Now the focus is on this final, we are approaching it with the same desire we have had so far”.
Absentees for Real Madrid
“It's not just Ronaldo, but all the players who aren't available: Jesé, Arbeloa, Marcelo, Cristiano... But it's not worth thinking about those who can't play, we must think about those who can and those who the boss thinks are the most suitable and the best team to win the title. It would be great if we could have the whole squad, but because of the issue with the schedule, injuries take their toll at certain points of the season and that is what is happening to us now”.
The cup win in 2011
“I remember it as a vibrant and attractive game, and a very passionate one with two sides battling it out for the title. We had a tough season with a defeat in the Camp Nou and it spurred us on to win the Copa. It was a great game and I would not change a thing. Everyone enjoyed the match and celebrated it”.
We have to forget about what has gone before and what could happen in the future and only focus on the final.
“Personally I'm not buying into Barcelona's last week, despite the defeats in La Liga and the Champions League. Things are different for both sides, and anything can happen in a final. We are on a good run and we're trying to get back into the fight for the league, but that has nothing to do with tomorrow”.
Confidence for the final
“The side is ready. Maybe we didn't have good results against big sides and at key moments, but the league is a tournament in which you play 19 other sides. The side is solid”.
Mateu Lahoz
“He's a good referee, I've always thought so, he does things his way and his style is different, he is a ref who lets you play. I have nothing to say about referees and I'm not going to make negative comments, quite the opposite. I am not going to fight the same war every year”.
Headlines
“I don't like to hog the headlines. But I understand that being at Real Madrid means you are a point of opinion and you have to cope with it. I'm not complaining. I don't like it and it would be great if everything went well tomorrow and all the Madrid fans and the whole team were on the front pages. I think we deserve that headline for the season we're having”.
The oppositions' performances
“I'm not going to worry about how Messi is playing. I'm worried about my own men, which is the most important thing. There is no need for us to worry about our rivals (...) the gaffer is approaching the match to win it. We cannot speculate or look back thinking that we have lost the league. It's a different match and what we and the gaffer have to do is approach it so that what happens tomorrow benefits Madrid”.
His statements regarding Busquets
“I already spoke about that the other day. I'm not going to get into it again. If I said something the other day, I don't care if someone has responded. I'm not going to add fuel to the fire and create more debate”.
I. Casillas Goalkeeper