[ad_1]
START FIRST MATCH: Martin Ødegaard gained confidence from the beginning in Real Madrid’s first league game of the season. Photo: ANDER GILLENEA / AFP
Zinedine Zidane praises the physical base of Martin Ødegaard (21) before the Spanish capital enters a closed match program.
Real Madrid host Real Betis in the second La Liga game of the season on Saturday at 9:00 p.m.
– We know what kind of team we come across, but that doesn’t change much for us. We have to improve what we did in San Sebastián, says Zidane in the press conference prior to the meeting with the Sevilla team that has won two games in a row in the opening of the series.
Now the harsh autumn begins for the French squad. Next week, the Madrid team will play both weekend and midweek.
The Frenchman was reluctant to know what kind of team he will line up on Saturday.
– There will always be some players who play and others who don’t. It’s life on a squad and on a team. I don’t want to say much about what each of them adds or does not add to the team, Zidane replied to a question about midfielder Casemiro’s bench.
But when asked about using Martin Ødegaard at the 10th position in the opener, the Frenchman shared something else.
– He is a player that I know well and a slightly different player that we can use higher up the field. We also have other players that we can use in that role and Martin can also play in various other positions, the coach said.
ROSES: Zinedine Zidane is happy with Martin Ødegaard’s physical base. Photo: Javier Etxezarreta / EFE
– Martin has great racing power and a very good physique. Now he played in the first game. We will have many games ahead and they will come closer. There will be no breaks for us, so the whole team must be ready.
Ødegaard took part in the Madrid team’s joint training session the day before the away game with Real Betis, but earlier this week there was uncertainty about the Norwegian’s chances of participating in the second game of the season.
Ødegaard tested positive for the corona virus for the first time after the 0-0 game against Real Sociedad on Sunday. It was reported by various Spanish media on Tuesday night. The second test, however, was negative.
On Thursday, the third test also showed a negative effect on the coronavirus and Ødegaard was thus able to return to Real Madrid training.
