Real Madrid came away from the RCDE Stadium with all three points. In a tough game vs a very active Espanyol, Madridistas managed to get the victory but had to work very hard for it and the reward only came two minutes before the end of the regular time. Toni Kroos, Rodrygo and Courtois, who gave a very important contribution in this success, reflected on the win in their interviews for the press after the game.
Toni Kroos had the following to say: "It's to be expected that we encounter difficulties, especially away from home. Until their goal, we were in control of the game. We got that control back in the last half an hour. We could see that they were starting to get a bit tired and we took advantage of that. Winning away from home is never easy, but we've done it three times on the bounce. We're very happy".
"It's important to know how to dig in. Our opponents are always good quality and we're going to have to face that every four days from now on. At times during the season we have to dig in and we know how to do that", he continued.
Benzema: "Winning individual awards doesn't matter to us. The important thing is that he contributes to the team and he always does. He did that today and we don't even need to talk about how important he is".
After the German, it was Rodrygo who had something to say. The Brazilian provided the assist for the 2nd goal told the press that the coach insists for him to to attack the spaces in behind in order to catch the opponent off guard: "I'm very happy to be back playing and helping the team. LaLiga has now kicked off and I'm happy that I've already provided an assist and we got the win".
"We were better than them in the first half, but they scored a goal late on. It was a bit difficult in the second half, but the coach told me to attack the space in behind, which is where we were able to cause problems. I did that and it worked out well. Benzema thanked me for the assist. I knew where he was going to be, because he always makes that move there. We just have to put the ball there and he does the rest".
The last one to speak was Courtois. The Belgian appreciated the reaction of the team and the good physical shape which was crucial in this victory. He said: “I didn’t have much to do in the first half until the goal. They grew into the game and it was more balanced in the second half. We’re pleased with the win, we showed we’re in good physical shape. It was a good game and a good win”.
“We knew they posed a threat from corner kicks. They had a good one, but it didn’t come to anything. Their goal changed the game, they grew in confidence and they went for the game. They had more chances in the second half and so did we. Thankfully we went 2-1 ahead”, he added.
Assist by Tchouameni: “Those who know him from Monaco know that, apart from his physique, he’s also really good technically. Perhaps he found it difficult to adapt to the pace at Real Madrid, but now you can see how settled he is in training and in the games. Apart from playing well defensively, he’s also good going forward. That’s important and I’m pleased for him. He’ll keep improving and he’ll be important for us”.
Top-of-the-table clash against Betis: “Betis play really well. Last season we had some tough games against them. They play good football, they’ve got loads of experience and we’ll have to press them well, while being careful. It’s going to be a good match. Then we’ve got the Champions League, so I hope we can keep winning with another victory in our first home game. It’ll be tough, but we’ve got a good week of training and we’ll be ready”.
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