Marcelo: "Cristiano knows that we are with him to the death..."
Madrid's deputy captain was the first player to face the media at UCLA. He spoke about Cristiano's situation with the Spanish tax authorities, Theo and Zidane.
Marcelo, Real Madrid's deputy captain was in charge of delivering the team's first press conference of the US stage. The Brazilian full-back attended the international press at the UCLA training complex and spoke about how the first week has been going as well as other issues concerning the team.
Real Madrid chasing six trophies in 2017/18
This will be your 12th season at Real Madrid. How will you be confronting the challenges which lie ahead this year? “I confront every season with great excitement and hope, with the aim of doing everything possible to reach the end of the season in good shape and with the chance to win silverware. I've been with the club for a long time now but every season I give the best I have got to give; I try to learn new things, pass on my experience to the younger players and help them - and show them what I have been through at this great club. My hopes are always the same - to give everything I have to the team, so that we have a chance of winning something by the end of the year”.
Theo Hernández: “There has always been great competition for my position - the left-back slot; I have always had to fight to win my place, get to play and be able to win trophies. Theo is very young, he is going to help Madrid a lot and he has my complete faith as well as that of his team mates and the coach. He's come here to help us”.
Always room to improve, says Marcelo
Is this season's objective to win all six competitions? Is the current Madrid squad even better than last season's? “It's difficult to say if the squad's better or worse than last season's. There are always sweeping changes at Madrid, a lot of good players come and go. We're only focusing on the pre-season and we want to start the new seasons as strong as we can”.
How can the team impROve on last season's triumphs of winning the league and Champions League? “We won two trophies which are very difficult to win but we know that we can improve as a team. It will be difficult to top last season's successes but we have learned things along the way and we're going to try. The key is working - that's what we have to do: work, work, work”.
Have you spoken to Cristiano? Do you think the Spanish press and society have treated Cristiano badly? “I haven't spoken to him, but he knows that all of his team mates support him to the death. As for the press, there's nothing for me to say, you know better than I do. When he arrives we'll have a chat, and see how he is”.
Zidane keeps it simple and makes sure there is unity
Zidane: “The boss keeps it simple in what he tells us. He works hard without pushing anyone around, he does everything he can to ensure we have a good chance of contesting all the competitions we are in, that's all there is to it really”.
Are the players especially up to put one over Mourinho? “I don't get that impression. There's no desire for revenge or anything like that. With me, there's no problem, there's no reason why I would want revenge. For me it's a pleasure to play against the best. He helped me a lot so I've got nothing against him”.
