Three times Serie A champions AS Roma will take on La Liga giants Real Madrid in their next Champions League game. Both AS Roma and Madrid had disappointing starts to their domestic season. Roma and Madrid will come into the game on the back of away defeats from Udinese and Eibar, respectively, in their respective league games.
Speaking about their upcoming clash with Madrid, AS Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco said, “Roma are facing the current European champions,” before adding, “Is it better to play against them now? Real Madrid can say the same about us.”
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Eusebio Di Francesco added, “We are two teams who are, in speech marks, sick, and we have our problems in the league. However, we are playing against the champions and it isn’t just any match and the fact that we come into this on nine points is a very positive thing. I think Real Madrid will be similar on a tactical level [to the first meeting], although I do see differences at the psychological level. When we played the first leg, they were doing very well and we still had to fix some things. It is a totally different moment on a mental level now.”
Di Francesco also further slammed his side and said, “What is missing for us is the determination and desire to win games and that’s something that you can’t buy in the transfer market.”
An annoyed Di Francesco added, “I have no explanation for it. I have enough problems with my own team, but we will go into the game determined and with great effort because that is what we need.”
