Zidane refuses to point out Bale
THE WHOLE TEAM WAS POOR IN FIRST HALF Real turn things around to see off a spirited Napoli in the Champions League.
Zinedine Zidane refused to criticise Gareth Bale as 11-time winners Real Madrid eclipsed a dismal first half to end Napoli’s Champions Lague quarterfinal hopes with a clinical 3-1 win at the San Paolo on Tuesday.
Bale returned to Real’s starting line-up alongside Cristiano Ronaldo for the second leg of the sides’ last 16 clash after he, due to suspension, and injured Ronaldo missed a 4-1 league win at Eibar last weekend.
But the Welshman was just one of several players left in the shadows by a spirited Napoli side bent on overcoming a 3-1 first leg deficit to the Spanish giants.
Maurizio Sarri’s men had 11 shots in the opening period, the most Real had seen in a Champions League game since facing 15 against Juventus in 2013.
But Zidane was quick to brush off claims Bale had not performed his defensive duties.
“I don’t agree at all,” the Real coach said. “In the first half, none of us played well.”
Real advanced 6-2 on aggregate and will go into the hat for tomorrow’s quarterfinal draw hoping for a slice of fortune as they maintain hopes of being crowned European champions for a 12th time.
But Zidane, who had captain Sergio Ramos to thank for giving Real a 2-1 lead by the 57th minute after Dries Mertens’ superb 24th minute opener for the hosts, said he will expect improvements.
“We obviously have to do better. We knew the start here against Napoli would be hard, it’s a hard stadium to play at,” added Zidane, who played against the Azzurri on several occasions during a fiveyear spell at Juventus.
“We suffered a lot in the opening half, we didn’t get to play the way we had planned. In the second half we did a lot better, and I’m happy with the win.
“The fact two of our goals came from corners doesn’t matter.”
Sarri had warned of the threat from the “world’s richest club, with the best players” a day earlier. And Zidane’s Galacticos emerged a different team at the half-time interval.
Sarri only had praise for Ramos: “He’s world class at dead ball situations. He scores seven or eight goals a year like that. It doesn’t matter whether you man mark him or mark him in the zone: the problem is not just him.”