Aurélien Tchouaméni said Real Madrid respect Roma's quality ahead of their Champions League meeting at the Olimpico on 14 October at 21:00, the second fixture of the league phase. The French midfielder acknowledged the difficulty of playing away but expressed confidence in Madrid's ability to win.
Roma qualified for the Champions League this season by finishing third in Serie A last year and will face Madrid in a high-profile early test of their continental campaign. Tchouaméni, speaking in his pre-match press conference, outlined both teams' form and approach to the fixture.
Asked his assessment of Roma, Tchouaméni said: "I like very much how Roma play and I know that tomorrow the match will be difficult, also because we will play away from home. I think we have enough quality to win the match and that is what we will try to do." On Madrid's own campaign, he noted: "It's a really important match for us. We started well by beating Inter, now we want to continue to pick up points in this competition."
When pressed on Madrid's midfield creativity, Tchouaméni declined to elaborate publicly: "I have my opinion on this, the rest is up to you. I won't say what I think, I think it's more important to talk about tomorrow's match. I'm only one of the players and I have my opinion which I won't share. I know what players we have in the squad and we give 100% with our characteristics. We all have different characteristics, the most important thing is to continue to work as a team." He also defended the squad against criticism, saying: "When you play for Real Madrid there are always criticisms, the most important thing is to stay focused and always try to improve as a squad. We can certainly do some things better, but we all know that the most important thing is what you win at the end of the season. And that is what we will try to do."
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Real Madrid midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni has praised Roma's quality ahead of the Champions League fixture at the Olimpico on 14 October at 21:00, the second match of the league phase. Speaking at his pre-match press conference on 13 October alongside manager José Mourinho, Tchouaméni acknowledged the difficulty of playing away from home but expressed confidence in Madrid's ability to secure victory. "I like very much how Roma play and I know that tomorrow the match will be difficult, also because we will play away from home," he said. "I think we have the quality to win the match and that is what we will try to do."
Tchouaméni confirmed that Real Madrid regularly studies Roma's performances. "I see Roma's matches very often, we know it will be difficult, especially away from home, but we have the quality to win," he told reporters. He stressed the importance of Madrid maintaining focus despite recent criticism of their performances. "We can improve a lot, we have not done our best game lately, but we have talked, we have trained," he explained, adding that composure remains paramount. "The important thing is to keep your nerves steady and calm, we work every day to improve." On Madrid's broader campaign, Tchouaméni noted the significance of their recent victory: "It was important to win against Villarreal, we want to move forward" in the competition. When asked about the Ballon d'Or, he named Kylian Mbappé as his choice, suggesting forward Olise would also merit consideration.
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Testo Originale / Source Text
“Aurélien Tchouaméni ha preso parte alla consueta conferenza stampa alla vigilia di Roma-Real Madrid, sfida in programma domani alle 21 all'Olimpico e valida per la seconda giornata della League Phase di Champions League. Di seguito le dichiarazioni del centrocampista francese: Come arrivate a…”
Read the full article in Italian at Forza Roma.
