Zidane on Champions League: "I don't think Spanish football has had its day"

Zinedine Zidane was obliged to veer away from the standard press conference inquisition about his players and what Real Madrid’s starting XI might look like next season when he was asked for his opinion on the possible creation of a European Super League and whether the presence of only one Liga side in the last eight of the Champions League this season represents a power shift in the continent’s elite club competition.

“I don’t know what will happen in the future,” the Real Madrid manager said about proposals for changes to the current Champions League format while stating a preference for the status quo. “There are a lot of news stories but I have always thought about the clubs who don’t play in the competition very often. It’s very difficult to qualify for and to be able to play in the competition and to experience it as a club is wonderful for those who rarely play in it. There will always be evolution in football , we’ll have to see what happens in the future, but it is true that we want to progress, move forward and evolve. But we have to find a balance. That’s my personal opinion.”

Zidane: "It looks like England's turn this year"

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As to the question of Spanish dominance in the Champions League coming to an end this season, with only Barcelona remaining in the competition alongside four English clubs, Juventus, Ajax and Porto, Zidane opined: “I don’t think the winning cycle of Spanish clubs has had its day, but it’s true that the English clubs are trying to win it and the Italians too, and it looks this year like it’s the turn of the English. It’s normal, football evolves and I don’t find it strange to see the English clubs there; their coaches being new things to the game in their experience of their way of playing football. I think it’s a good thing for them. But I don’t think Spanish football will lose its place.”