Real Madrid booked their place in the Champions League Round of 16 after a 2-1 victory over Benfica on Wednesday, which ensured a 3-1 aggregate success in their play-off round tie.
As per Diario AS, head coach Alvaro Arbeloa gave his thoughts on the match. He explained that it was difficult for his side in the opening stages, but they got better as proceedings went on.
“In any game you’re not going to have it easy. You’re going to suffer, it’s the best competition in Europe. They pressed us, it was difficult for us to get out, there was space at the back and we didn’t take advantage of it. Until we corrected that a little after half time, and that’s when we did better. We went from strength to strength.”
Arbeloa: Tchouameni is going to score goals for Real Madrid
Arbeloa was pleased with the performance of Aurelien Tchouameni, who scored Real Madrid’s equaliser on the night.
“Tchouameni’s goal was very important. We’ve talked about it a lot these days, he’s at a spectacular level. If he was able to accompany, he was going to score goals. It’s the first of many he’s going to score, I hope.”
Vinicius “must be our leader and our reference” – Arbeloa
Arbeloa also heaped praise on Vinicius Junior, who scored once again.
“He played a great game, very unbalanced, scoring goals, creating danger. He has a lot of MVPs at home so it is good for Tchouameni to get this one – he does the dirty work that is usually not recognised much. When Mbappe was there we already needed him, and now that he is not, we need him much more. He must be our leader and our reference. We have seen that he can make a difference.”
Arbeloa clarifies Asencio, Mbappe injury cases
Raul Asencio was forced off in the second half after taking a blow to his head, and Arbeloa has confirmed that the Real Madrid defender has gone to hospital. However, he does not believe the issue to be serious.
“It looks like something with the neck, it doesn’t seem serious. He has gone to the hospital, hopefully it is just a scare. The blow has been tremendous, our stomachs have shrunk. But it looks like it’s going to be nothing.”
Arbeloa also explained the situation with Kylian Mbappe, who dropped out of the squad to face Benfica at the last minute.
“I can’t say the difference between discomfort and injury. The best thing was to stop and recover. He can’t play. We hope he will be back in a few days or weeks.”
